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CHICAGO -- Jonathan Toews takes no satisfaction from the fact Vancouver Canucks defenseman Willie Mitchell will miss the Western Conference semifinals because of a concussion.
The Blackhawks captain and former UND standout was sidelined six games during the regular season after a crunching open-ice hit from Mitchell on Oct. 21 caused a concussion.
"You kind of want to get revenge a little bit . . . when you play against the player who put you in that situation," Toews said. "There's definitely no hard feelings. I got a call from Willie Mitchell (after the hit), and he explained that he's had some trouble with concussions.
"I definitely appreciate when a player does something like that and shows the respect he has. He was just playing his game."
Mitchell was limited to 48 games this season and hasn't played since suffering a concussion Jan. 16 when the Penguins' Evgeni Malkin ran him into the boards.
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"It's never easy for anybody to come back from an injury, especially a head injury," Toews said. "You definitely think twice before going into an area where you might get hit again or you might get injured again. Eventually that goes away, and you play the game again."
