WINNIPEG — Maybe it was the heat, or perhaps the third time really isn’t a charm.
A scarce crowd assembled Friday to welcome back Chicago Blackhawks captain and Winnipeg boy Jonathan Toews to his old St. Vital stomping crowds. The Stanley Cup winner came with hockey’s coveted trophy for a community celebration for the third time in six years.
Toews spoke to the media briefly inside an air conditioned Jonathan Toews Sportsplex on Dakota Street before bringing the Cup outside to the couple hundred of fans who had gathered.
The 27-year-old hoisted Lord Stanley to roaring cheers, but unlike other years, fans weren’t given the opportunity to get up close to the trophy or take a photograph with Toews. Organizers cited time constraints behind the decision.
Earlier in the day, Toews visited a Canadian Tire to work with their Jumpstart program, which assists kids aged four to 18 from families in financial need to cover registration fees, equipment and/or transportation to organized sports. He later visited youth at the Rehabilitation Centre for Children on Wellington Crescent.
Toews last brought the cup to the city in 2010 and again in 2013.
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