Olczyk: Toews is NHL's best two-way player

The Chicago Sun-Times points out that as one of his many intangibles, Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews has a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

Luck?

“It’s not luck when it happens over and over and over again,” said NBC and Blackhawks analyst Eddie Olczyk. “It’s part of his DNA. Great players find a way to get the job done and put themselves in that position. They have that anticipation — knowing what’s going to happen before it does.

“There have been players that all of the sudden the puck is on their stick and they're gone. You make your own bounces. You make your own luck. You’ve got to be able to finish it off or have that ability and want the responsibility to put the game on your stick.”

Olczyk continued.

“He has become one of the top three players in the National Hockey League,” Olczyk said. “If he’s not scoring he’ still making an impact on the game. If he’s not defending, he’s making an impact on the game by scoring those big goals.

“With what’s happened the last couple of years, I don’t think there’s any doubt Jonathan Toews is the best two-way player in the National Hockey League. His value on any team is probably measured even more so with the respect he commands — how he makes the game a little safer when he’s on the ice.”

Source: Mark Potash, Chicago Sun-Times