Four teams remain in the mix for Jonathan Toews.

When former National Hockey League forward Jonathan Toews initially hinted at a potential comeback to the NHL, I must admit I was extremely skeptical of the possibility. Fast forward several months however and we now find ourselves on the verge of NHL free agency with Toews' name one that is now being given serious consideration from a number of teams around the league.

Recently, NHL insider Darren Dreger shared his insight on the Toews situation and made comments that suggested that there are now 4 serious contenders for the services of the former 3 time Stanley Cup winner.

Dreger began by revealing that Toews himself hasn't made up his mind yet and is still in the intelligence gathering process of his potential comeback.

"He's still gathering intelligence that's what he's doing," said Dreger on TSN 1050.

Dreger would go on to reveal that he himself had believed the Avalanche were out of the running after signing Brock Nelson, but revealed that his sources had warned him against that line of thinking.

"My Colorado sources said... they are still very, very interested," admitted Dreger. "And if it's not Toews it will be something else in free agency."

According to the insider, Colorado and the Winnipeg Jets have both shown a great deal of interest in this possibility.

"Colorado is definitely on Jonathan Toews' list," said Dreger. "So is the Winnipeg Jets."

The Jets in fact sound like they are so interested in bringing the hometown hero back to Winnipeg that they are prepared to move heaven and earth to make it happen.

"If Jonathan Toews wants to play in Winnipeg then Winnipeg is going to do everything possible to make that real," added Dreger.

Interestingly enough however there are a pair of Stanley Cup contenders in the Eastern Conference who also have interest in a potential Toews return. Dreger revealed that the highly competitive Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning, both in the NHL's Atlantic Division, would like to get their hands on Toews as well.

"Toronto is still in the conversation and so is Tampa Bay... so there's a pretty decent audience for Jonathan Toews," said Dreger.

With so many teams reportedly interested in acquiring Toews, you have to wonder how much he will eventually cost to get under contract. Could one of these teams end up overpaying for a player that has yet to show he can still deliver at the NHL level?