How are you feeling about Tavares these days?

[SHANNYPLAN]

Love what I’ve seen out of him this season.

Looks faster and more motivated than either of the last two seasons.

Has really embraced the captaincy adopting both Knies and Minten (you hear about things like this around the league, but I don’t remember the last time it happened with the leafs).

 

[ZEBROA]

Got nothing against him . But i still want Nylander and him to be separated. at least when they start to slow down. But i realy think the team would be better overall if they had there own 2a 2b line.

 

[francis246]

There are other stats that don't look as positive, especially if we're looking at the more recent seasons.

But you're right. Beyond the fact that he doesn't seem to mesh with Nylander, he's not an anchor.

I'm not sure he's lived up to that contract, but I'm not sure anyone playing 2C could.

His contract is the problem.

He’s been PPG on a UFA contract LOL. He’s lived up to it. In terms of production. I don’t think there’s really been a UFA in the salary cap era that has brought that type of value throughout the full duration of their contract. Slightly overpaid but he’s produced. Points are points, whether it’s on the PP, PK or even strength.

If you want to argue overall impact I can get that argument. Other UFA’s have had a bigger impact for their teams. So I understand that point of view.

Like others said, it’s okay also to just admit you hate the guy for whatever reason haha. Just teasing.

 

[Nineteen67]

Within a 20 foot radius of the net he’s been really good.

 

[hotpaws]

Another stupid post from you, no surprise.

JT literally made one of our best plays of the year so far on Willies last goal, a play that only a few players can make in this league and Nylander basically had nothing to do with, just put the puck in the open net after Tavares fooled everyone on the ice and made a perfect pass to him.

yup just a simple tap in , lol

Willie created the entire play and finished it with a tough angle beauty snipe with the goalie sliding over taking away the majority of the net .

but I guess the o/t winner which barely glanced off JT's shaft on it's way into the net , if it even did touch his shaft , was really Johnny working more magic as well

 

[ACC1224]

No issues at the moment, he's playing really well.

 

[Dekes For Days]

You can't use the PP argument because most of his points have come at even strength, including his 2 last night, and yes appearently he did get a piece of the puck on the game winner.

Because You can't use the PP argument anymore You have now moved the goal posts and gone to this.

Just admit you hate John Tavares because you are never actually right about anything

It's even worse than that. Not only was he dismissive of one of the best PP producers in the league last year, he adamantly refused to use anything other than overall ES production (which includes things like EN) when discussing Tavares, because it made Tavares look worse. Now suddenly he's specifically looking at 5v5 primary production, to again make Tavares look worse.

It's just funny at this point.

 

[WillyC]

yup just a simple tap in , lol

Willie created the entire play and finished it with a tough angle beauty snipe with the goalie sliding over taking away the majority of the net .

but I guess the o/t winner which barely glanced off JT's shaft on it's way into the net , if it even did touch his shaft , was really Johnny working more magic as well

Watch the OT goal again… looks like it’s wide left until it hits Kutch and then JT’s stick.

Lol… 9 points in 5 games must be infuriating for you.

 

[hotpaws]

Watch the OT goal again… looks like it’s wide left until it hits Kutch and then JT’s stick.

Lol… 9 points in 5 games must be infuriating for you

it was headed into the net and if JT touched it then the puck barely glanced off his shaft

as a life long Leaf fan i hope Johnny cracks 100 pts since it would be huge for the team but that still wouldn't change the fact Willie has been the driver on that line so far this season . what i don't get is why saying that seems to trigger a number of people on this board

 

[meefer]

*Tavares contract was fine at the time he signed. The contracts of Matthews, Marner and Nylander were the mistakes.
*I wish that more people would fight back against the cap complaints this team has faced and recognize that we signed our four top contracts just before Covid. We were more adversely affected than any other team in the league. Had the cap gone up according to plan, JT's contract would not be the issue today that so many use to slander him.
*Yes, he has his faults: defensively suspect and a poor skater being two of the more noticeable issues. However, playing with primarily Nylander on the right and a rotating cast of LWers of dubious quality does not set up a C to be a stellar defensive star.
*Outside of Hyman, I cannot think of another Leaf who plays to his abilities as consistently as Tavares, he is a professional who does not short change by effort, the team that pays him.

*Had JT played with Marner v Nylander for the last 5 years I suspect he'd have averaged 4-5 more goals/season, bumping him to the top 10 in the league during that period while also seeing his defensive struggles abated.
*While not a top 10 C anymore, he'd certainly be the #1C for more than a few teams in today's NHL.

 

[WillyC]

it was headed into the net and if JT touched it then the puck barely glanced off his shaft

as a life long Leaf fan i hope Johnny cracks 100 pts since it would be huge for the team but that still wouldn't change the fact Willie has been the driver on that line so far this season . what i don't get is why saying that seems to trigger a number of people on this board

If JT touched it?… puck was going wide left.

Just admit, you can’t bring yourself to watch it again.

 

[IPS]

Been great but Willy has been a beast and has been giving him insane looks every game. Sounds greedy of me but I'd like to see more than 2 goals with the looks he's had.

 

[robertmac43]

Not worried about him in the slightest. On one of the best 2C's in the league and will likely finish between 80 and 90 points.

 

[hotpaws]

If JT touched it?… puck was going wide left.

Just admit, you can’t bring yourself to watch it again.

you watch it again because i couldn't give a f*** either way since all i cared about was it went in

you can also spin how the goal was all about Johnny's iron will that magically made the puck appear and that Willie wasn't even involved in the play for all i care , lol

 

[IPS]

Got nothing against him . But i still want Nylander and him to be separated. at least when they start to slow down. But i realy think the team would be better overall if they had there own 2a 2b line.

You're not getting Tavares into the offensive zone without Nylander. Nylander does probably 80% of the transition work to get into the zone every shift, Tavares is a good first option for the D coming out of the zone and that's where his role ends.

If Nylander's not with Tavares then it needs to be Marner otherwise you're not maximizing the offense of anybody.

 

[Cor]

Not worried about him in the slightest. On one of the best 2C's in the league and will likely finish between 80 and 90 points.

He's on pace for 147 points. I think he finishes with 130 personally.

 

[robertmac43]

He's on pace for 147 points. I think he finishes with 130 personally.

I'd even settle for 110....

 

[ZEBROA]

You're not getting Tavares into the offensive zone without Nylander. Nylander does probably 80% of the transition work to get into the zone every shift, Tavares is a good first option for the D coming out of the zone and that's where his role ends.

If Nylander's not with Tavares then it needs to be Marner otherwise you're not maximizing the offense of anybody.

They will suck at some point. Then i hope they try Nylander at C again away from Tavares.

 

[francis246]

you watch it again because i couldn't give a f*** either way since i all cared about was it went in

you can also spin how the goal was about Johnny's iron will that magically made the puck appear and that Willie wasn't even involved in the play for all i care , lol

Does it matter tho? Both had a role in the goal. Nylander was the puck carrier and made a good play on net. JT went hard to the net and caused havoc leading to the goal. It’s what you want out of our two forwards.

 

[thewave]

He has looked good so far. Much better than stretches last season. Maybe he had some underlying injuries

 

[cgc83]

He's been great , as he has been the entire time as a Maple Leaf .
I dont understand why Tavarse gets any shade from people to this point ?!?!

 

[1specter]

People still crying about a deal signed 5 years ago, with 2 years left while the guy still produces at PPG is comical to me. What's done is done, he's not getting traded or waived or whatever, cheer for the team and move on.

 

[ACC1224]

People still crying about a deal signed 5 years ago, with 2 years left while the guy still produces at PPG is comical to me. What's done is done, he's not getting traded or waived or whatever, cheer for the team and move on.

Stop by and spread that advice to the Marner hate cult.

 

[nuck]

He’s been PPG on a UFA contract LOL. He’s lived up to it. In terms of production. I don’t think there’s really been a UFA in the salary cap era that has brought that type of value throughout the full duration of their contract. Slightly overpaid but he’s produced. Points are points, whether it’s on the PP, PK or even strength.

If you want to argue overall impact I can get that argument. Other UFA’s have had a bigger impact for their teams. So I understand that point of view.

Like others said, it’s okay also to just admit you hate the guy for whatever reason haha. Just teasing.

A good start obviously. Keep doing it when M & M are cold and then bring something for the playoffs. He will never earn the deal because they already had a #1c who is better and the club's other high end talent really costs more than a team who is signing an $11M UFA can afford. If KD thought there was any chance the big 3 were going to cost him $30M I don't think he signs JT, but that plus the flat cap sabotaged his plan. Not making excuses but Covid and getting rinsed by the big 3 were not on anyone's mind in 2018. Yes Covid hit all teams but if you didn't have big stars coming due for new deals, how hard was the hit? That rules out most of the other teams in the league.

Even with the JT signing they might have iced a much stronger club but for the other factors in play. Giant UFA money seldom makes sense but least of all when you ignore the actual holes in your lineup when you open the wallet up. However it is what it is. I think he might have one more big year in him but with Mitch rather than Willie. Beyond that he is fine if he can manage a big playoff round but can anyone do that with Keefe?

 

[mjd1001]

He's currently playing the best hockey of his career.

At some point it's going to slow down obviously because he's not going to put close to 2 points a night forever.

But to say he's no longer great simply isn't true.

For me it is true.

Difference between very good and great. To me great means you are a guy that can be counted on to carry a team, and are in the top 1-2 guys opponents focus on to shut down when they play you. That is not Tavares anymore. He has 9 points over 5 games, so a 'very good' player like him can still have stretches of that level of production, but that doesn't make him a great player.