Is John Tavares starting to slip?

[VanCity88]

Yes. His #'s still look decent, but I catch a lot of Leaf games and he's not a factor out there like he used to be. It's not so bad for the Leafs though. His contract is up next year, so it's not a Huberdeau situation or anything where they'll be hamstrung for the next decade.

 

[Darcy Tucker]

How's it possible that he's the 7th highest paid player or whatever and Keefe is scared to deploy him in overtime? You would expect your captain to lead the charge and be a game breaker and even take a shootout once in a while.

 

[34]

He’s very slow.

JT was never a good skater, but my God he is behind the play and clearly struggles in high paced games like last night’s loss to the Avalanche.

He is beyond slow. He is a turtle out there on the ice.

 

[Maple Leaf]

Is John Tavares starting to slip?

Current statistics are:

Games = 40
Goals = 12
Assists = 22
Points = 34

His 34 points are 68th in league scoring.

He is the 7th highest-paid player in the NHL.

When does his contract end?

o

 

[AvroArrow]

How many Leaf related threads has the OP made which have all been locked ? lol

 

[leafsfan5]

I mean we all expected that the last year or two of this contract would probably suck

With that in mind, he's doing better than expected, still at a high-end 2c level of production

 

[Goose]

what does this mean?

It means in every major sport when big name players hit UFA they are overpaid and their contracts look bad by the end. It's the cost of doing business, i.e. the cost of getting a very good/elite/star player for just $ without having to give up assets.

 

[VainGretzky]

He’s very slow.

JT was never a good skater, but my God he is behind the play and clearly struggles in high paced games like last night’s loss to the Avalanche.

And he is entering the ages when a player loses a step , he will struggle bad when that happens

 

[KevinRedkey]

And he is entering the ages when a player loses a step , he will struggle bad when that happens

I agree most guys lose a step, but I don't think there's quite the same negative impact on guys that were never great skaters to begin with.

Joe Thonton finished 5th in voting for the Hart and Selke as a 36yr old. Zdeno Chara got Norris votes in 7 different seasons after age 32 (3 of which were age 40+). tavares is only 33, so I don't think his cliff is as close as many are expecting it to be. Just my 2 cents...

 

[GeeoffBrown]

what does this mean?

The way the current CBA is designed, a player's most productive years are mostly under RFA status. Although, the players have been able to negotiate the UFA age down significantly

 

[Panthaz89]

He's still a pretty good player...gets a ton of dirty goals by going to the net.

 

[DownIsTheNewUp]

Surprised Leaf fans are still quick to defend him. I guess there's still nostalgia for the hometown boy signing there. But the reality is, that contract was the boat anchor that never let their cup window fully open.

Great player, but never lived up to that contract.

 

[Green]

No, close this reverse jinx thread

 

[Junohockeyfan]

He's a key reason why the Leafs are not a cup contender. His caphit has crushed any opportunity to fill the gaping holes (top pairing D and bonafide starting goaltender).

 

[Rich Nixon]

Among all forwards in NHL at even strength production Tavares is ranked 58th. Given his AAV that isn't impactful enough IMO.

View attachment 802960

That's kind of where he's been, though. Last year he was 90th in even strength points, tied with Morgan Frost.

 

[Nick Hansen]

I mean we all expected that the last year or two of this contract would probably suck

With that in mind, he's doing better than expected, still at a high-end 2c level of production

I suppose that is true but relative to his cap hit, he never lived up to his contract any way. His first years weren't that great either. Third in goals once (the first year) but never top ten in points. No Hart votes to speak of. Nothing memorable in the playoffs. To this day, he's the 7th highest cap hit. And nothing to show for it.

 

[abo9]

He's probably just a little banged up although he probably wouldn't admit it

Its that deep playoff run from last year

 

[Toby91ca]

I agree most guys lose a step, but I don't think there's quite the same negative impact on guys that were never great skaters to begin with.

Joe Thonton finished 5th in voting for the Hart and Selke as a 36yr old. Zdeno Chara got Norris votes in 7 different seasons after age 32 (3 of which were age 40+). tavares is only 33, so I don't think his cliff is as close as many are expecting it to be. Just my 2 cents...

I think the guys that still perform well into mid and late 30s are the massive exceptions though, not saying Tavares is on his way out or anything though.

 

[Green]

Business is business. Toronto is going to gain $11M in cap space. They are going to do what is best. Unless he is willing to take on $2M-$3M on the contract then he is out the door.

There is zero chance Tavares is playing anywhere but the Leafs again, if 2-3 million is the max they are going to give he is going to sign for that

 

[mm11]

Do you really think the Leafs would walk away from him though? I think it's practically a certainty that he re-signs and likely on a team friendly deal. He's living his childhood dream as the Captain of his hometown team, there is no way he is going to let go of that easily. His wife and whole family are there in Toronto, they wouldn't let him leave even if he wanted to either.

guy should sign for a hometown discount considering he is set for life

 

[The Winter Soldier]

His PP production is down slightly this year. Which always inflates his points totals. He's not going to be a player that can produce to his salary 5 v 5. When he can pad his PP stats again, his stats line will be more respectable. He is a career high 88 pont, that averages 77 pts a year. Is this worth a 11M dollars in a cap league? Nope.

 

[34]

There is zero chance Tavares is playing anywhere but the Leafs again, if 2-3 million is the max they are going to give he is going to sign for that

He is not worth more than that. I am really hoping the leafs part ways with him. Time for a change of culture.

 

[The Management]

You could argue the team as a whole has taken a step back this season. But Tavares is what he always was; a luxury second line center.

Last year he was 29th in the league in points among all forwards, and 15th among centers. In 2021-2022, he was 41st in league points among all forwards, and 18th among centers. In 2020-2021, he was 25th in league points among all forwards, and 11th among centers. In 2019-2020, he was 43rd in league scoring among all forwards, and around 23rd among centers.

There was a time when the conventional wisdom was that strong teams were built down the middle. Crosby-Malkin, Kopitar-Carter, Backstrom-Kuznetsov, sort of characterized that era.

When Tavares signed that deal (2018-2019), there was no way of foreseeing covid and a stagnating salary cap. Cap percentage wise, it was similar to the Kopitar deal signed a few years before.

Clearly the formula has not worked out in Toronto, but I wouldn't put it all on JT's shoulders. He's been pretty consistent, but he tends to put up lunchpail points and never really takes a game over offensively. Too pricey, with the benefit of hindsight, but as a second line center, he's still been very productive despite issues on the defensive side of the puck.

 

[Machinehead]

No, he is not worth $5M. A reasonable deal for him would be $2M-$3M. If he does not like the offer, we wish him the best. You will not get that money here.

After next season his contract is expired. Not Toronto’s problem where he goes. IMO, Toronto has to cut ties with him. He is not good enough anymore, he is bad.

A 75-point player isn't worth $5M???

It's not 2012 anymore. $5M is on the low-end of what a second liner gets.

 

[JTToilinginToronto]

There is zero chance Tavares is playing anywhere but the Leafs again, if 2-3 million is the max they are going to give he is going to sign for that

We'll see. Even though he doesn't need another cent to be able to live out the rest of his life comfortably, that's still a massive haircut to what he's averaged over his current contract.