GLENDALE, Ariz. -- It has been a frustrating couple of weeks for Jonathan Toews.
The Blackhawks' captain has had to sit and wait rather impatiently while he recovers from a concussion that caused him to miss four games.
The wait could be at an end as the center returned to the ice Wednesday for the first time since Canucks' Willie Mitchell crunched him as center ice Oct. 21.
Toews joined his Hawks teammates as they practiced at Jobing.com Arena in preparation for Thursday night's game against the Coyotes.
"It was frustrating to be out as long as I was," Toews said. "I feel good and I feel confident out there. I don't feel like I'm missing a step yet. The legs are little heavy (Wednesday) but it only has been a couple of weeks. I felt great before the hit. The next couple of nights would be a great way to get back into a routine."
Whether Toews plays against the Coyotes, the Avalanche in Denver on Friday night or beyond will be determined after Thursday's morning skate.
"It was his first day on the ice and I thought he did real well," coach Joel Quenneville said. "We'll see (Thursday) how he presents. As a staff, medically, the trainers, (general manager Stan Bowman) ... we'll look at it and come up with the right decision."
As far as the hit itself, Toews said he has watched the replays of Mitchell leaving the penalty box and leveling him with a high hit.
"It was a solid hit and it's part of the game," Toews said. "I had no idea (Mitchell) was there. I just skated right into him. He probably wasn't looking for the hit until the last second when he saw me skate right toward him and he just got all my body pretty much.
"He's a big, solid guy who knows how to hit. All I can ask for is that he kept his arm down and it was his shoulder so I guess that's within the rules. The good thing is I took some time off to make sure I'm 100 percent before I come back."
Toews' injury is among a number of recent incidents where hits to the head have sidelined players, including the Flyers' Mike Richards leveling the Panthers' David Booth and the Hawks' Andrew Ladd barreling over the Canadiens' Matt D'Agostini.
"It seems like there's quite a few," Toews said. "Some hits deserve suspensions and some others don't. I always thought it didn't really matter whether it was an elbow or shoulder, if it was a hit to the head it deserves a bigger penalty."
Legal or not, Toews indicated there could be some tension between the Hawks and Canucks when they meet Nov. 22 in Vancouver.
"We'll definitely be ready to play that team next time around," Toews said.
Still, the man teammates refer to as Mr. Serious was able to make light of the situation a little when asked how it felt to see himself on video struggling to reach the Hawks' bench after the hit.
"It was a little weird at first," Toews said. "At least I went to the right bench."
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