Chicago Blackhawks forward Andrew Shaw announced on Instagram Monday night that he will not return for the postseason because of ongoing concussion issues.
Full statement from #Blackhawks Andrew Shaw: pic.twitter.com/Bsrwtwajg5
— Jackie Spiegel (@jackiespiegel93) July 14, 2020
Andrew Shaw Remains Injured
Shaw hasn’t played since November 30th, 2019 because of a concussion. It became obvious throughout the season that he wasn’t going to make a quick recovery. In late February, the Blackhawks shut down Shaw for the rest of the season. Unfortunately, Shaw has had lots of experience with concussions. Stu Cowan from the Montreal Gazette wrote that last season when Shaw was a member of the Montreal Canadiens, Shaw told him he has had about three or four concussions in his NHL career.
Montreal traded Shaw back to Chicago last off-season. Shaw was a big member of the 2013 and 2015 Blackhawks’ championship teams, playing as an energy forward who could provide a good amount of secondary scoring. Chicago traded Shaw to Montreal in 2016 and he had three productive seasons in Montreal. The 2018-19 season was his best when he scored a career-high 47 points. This season, Shaw scored 10 points in 26 games.
What this Means for the Future
For Chicago, this is business as usual. They haven’t had Shaw for most of the season, so they can play at a high level without him. They will certainly miss Shaw’s postseason experience with having won two Stanley Cups. However, Chicago still has Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford and Brent Seabrook who were on those Cup winning teams for Chicago. They are fine for experience.
Shaw’s spot on Chicago’s fourth line right-wing will most likely be taken up by Matthew Highmore. Highmore has scored six points in 36 games this season. He doesn’t provide the same level of secondary scoring as Shaw, but he shouldn’t be an hinderance on Chicago’s playoff chances.
The best news is Shaw is feeling healthy and he feels like he is close to recovering. He plans on being back for next season, so the Blackhawks will be happy to have a solid bottom-six player back in their line-up for the 2020-21 season.
Main Photo:
