Is John Tavares starting to slip?

Regal

Registered User
Mar 12, 2010
26,675
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Vancouver
Hmm...you might be right. I may have fallen in to bias trap. What are some comparable Hall of Fame centers that got in and were not controversial? Sundin was PPG for 1350 games. Also 500+ goals. That does sound like a good Hall of Fame resume.

Yea, I think he’s one of those guys where his longevity really makes him a clear HOFer imo based on the usual standards. I think his tier of player can go either way and if he had started to regress earlier then he’d be a lot more borderline, but a guy who was considered a clear #1 C for a decade plus with high level career stats is usually going to get in. I mean someone like Getzlaf will probably get in, and Backstrom might as well.
 
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seafoam

Soft Shock
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May 17, 2011
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He has had elite highs, they just don't look as such because he played in a low scoring environment for a majority of his prime

He's finished 3rd in goals 2x, 2nd in points in 14-15, finished top 3 in MVP voting 2x
Regular season champion doesn’t really mean anything. He won NYI one series against a terrible FLA team.
 

Zybalto

Registered User
Dec 28, 2012
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You realize he didn’t play in the DPE, played with all the new rule changes.

Its easy enough to just look at era adjusted stats instead of using any guesswork.

Via hockeyref's era adjusted stats webpage:

Tavares currently sits 33rd all time for goals scored (just ahead of Frank Mahavolich)
Tavares currently sits 41st all time for points scored (just ahead of Bobby Hull)
 
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leafsfan5

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Jun 14, 2014
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Regular season champion doesn’t really mean anything. He won NYI one series against a terrible FLA team.
I mean yes he hasn't had playoff success, but you said he hasn't had highs. Unless you solely identify highs as playoff success (which is silly), it's clear he has had them.
You realize he didn’t play in the DPE, played with all the new rule changes.
He played the prime years of his career in an incredibly low scoring environment - that is a fact.

It was so low that his 1.01 PPG from 12/13-15-16 ranked him 4th among all forwards with 200 games played - only Crosby, Kane and Malkin were ahead of him. It's understandable why one would look at his stats during those years and come away unimpressed, while in reality he was close to a top forward in the league

The reason he has stayed close to his prime production levels at this point in his career is because scoring has risen rapidly. For example, Sidney Crosby from last year isn't close to the Crosby from 14-15, despite their numbers being comparable (1.14 last year vs 1.09 in 14-15).
 

Golden_Jet

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Sep 21, 2005
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He played the prime years of his career in an incredibly low scoring environment - that is a fact.
Which was a little higher than DPE, like previously mentioned,
DPE had the clutching and grabbing allowed, from 97/98 -03/04 (then lockout).

Then we had the rule changes, plus 3 on 3 hockey.

If you prefer facts.
 

BraveCanadian

Registered User
Jun 30, 2010
15,403
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Its easy enough to just look at era adjusted stats instead of using any guesswork.

Via hockeyref's era adjusted stats webpage:

Tavares currently sits 33rd all time for goals scored (just ahead of Frank Mahavolich)
Tavares currently sits 41st all time for points scored (just ahead of Bobby Hull)

Adjusted stats *are* guess work.. and not great guesses to be honest
 

gritdash60

Registered User
Aug 9, 2022
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He isn't starting to slip, what wasn't shown in the Leafs sheets picture is these bad boys!
jtsock.jpg
 
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leafsfan5

Registered User
Jun 14, 2014
14,885
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Which was a little higher than DPE, like previously mentioned,
DPE had the clutching and grabbing allowed, from 97/98 -03/04 (then lockout).

Then we had the rule changes, plus 3 on 3 hockey.

If you prefer facts.
That's fine, I'm not sure what it has to do with my point, though.

I didn't say JT played in the dead puck era itself, but he did play in an extremely low scoring era, the 2nd lowest scoring after the DPE

As a result of that his numbers appear less impressive than they are when you compare to his peers during that timeframe
 

The Hanging Jowl

Registered User
Apr 2, 2017
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The way people talk about Tavares is so odd, you'd think he just loafed around his whole career as teammates sometimes banked goals off him.

The really ironic thing about how this conversation has played out is people said a lot of the same things about Sundin. He had a playing style that made him look a little laid back and people mistook it for being lazy but nothing could have been further from the truth. The man was a warrior for the Leafs. So is Tavares though, just in a different way. Same production, different styles, same BS criticisms. It's just the way people are.
 

JackSlater

Registered User
Apr 27, 2010
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The really ironic thing about how this conversation has played out is people said a lot of the same things about Sundin. He had a playing style that made him look a little laid back and people mistook it for being lazy but nothing could have been further from the truth. The man was a warrior for the Leafs. So is Tavares though, just in a different way. Same production, different styles, same BS criticisms. It's just the way people are.
There's definitely a parallel. Part of what people held against Sundin was that he was huge, played in the 90s and 2000s, but wasn't overly physical. Not that he shied away from contact but he wasn't generally the initiator like a Lindros would be. He just didn't fit their expectations. To a degree Tavares has it held against him that he was never as good as people expected back in 2006.

Sundin and Tavares both give you top ten level scoring, a guy who can carry some crappy linemates, and a hard worker who doesn't cause drama. Aged well as scorers and were consistent. There's a lot to like. Sundin brought more charisma, so he's you soup salesman if the need arises.
 

The Hanging Jowl

Registered User
Apr 2, 2017
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There's definitely a parallel. Part of what people held against Sundin was that he was huge, played in the 90s and 2000s, but wasn't overly physical. Not that he shied away from contact but he wasn't generally the initiator like a Lindros would be. He just didn't fit their expectations. To a degree Tavares has it held against him that he was never as good as people expected back in 2006.

Sundin and Tavares both give you top ten level scoring, a guy who can carry some crappy linemates, and a hard worker who doesn't cause drama. Aged well as scorers and were consistent. There's a lot to like. Sundin brought more charisma, so he's you soup salesman if the need arises.

I'd close the thread after this summary if I could. Perfect comments.
 
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Zybalto

Registered User
Dec 28, 2012
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Adjusted stats *are* guess work.. and not great guesses to be honest

Adjusted stats are just mathing things out to give a more accurate comparison of different eras. Are they perfect? No, but they are still a great way to show different players values over the eras whether you played in a more dead puck era or if you played fewer games in a season, etc.
 

Golden_Jet

Registered User
Sep 21, 2005
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Adjusted stats are just mathing things out to give a more accurate comparison of different eras. Are they perfect? No, but they are still a great way to show different players values over the eras whether you played in a more dead puck era or if you played fewer games in a season, etc.
Being available to play is important.
 

BKarchitect

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Oct 12, 2017
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Probably will be historically underrated due to the Leafs move and contract...first part of his career, peak athletic scoring seasons were in DPE II and second part of his career has been defined/dogged by his contract and the unfulfilled promises of the Leafs during his time there.

Unique, unique player with his slow-mo style and other-worldly anticipation in the offensive zone. Will rightfully be knocked for lack of physicality given his size and defensive acumen but although he came off his peak rather abruptly, he is entering IMO an extended spring to his career due to his ability on the PP and lack of need to be a burner to do what he does.

I suspect he will be useful to a ripe old age - he can win draws and provide points with a man advantage (though to his credit, he's been a better than usual ES scorer this year). That should give him a very good opportunity to add significantly to his career point totals. He should be around 1,110 or so by the end of this year. If he ages gracefully as I suspect (in terms of being a point compiler), he could have 4 more fairly significant scoring seasons left in the locker...there could be 200-250 more points there which puts him in pretty significant all-time scoring territory with 2 Hart finalist years early in his career.

I predict after this year when he gets on a "normalized" old guy contract, his rep will go up significantly and some teams...the Leafs, or whomever - will have a very useful and productive old guy on their hands, in the right situation...a late stage Benn/Pavelski type.
 

gritdash60

Registered User
Aug 9, 2022
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Behind the net
Tavares is a center who seemed so great when you didn't have McDavid or MacKinnon, now that you do he seems such a bad player because the ones i mentioned can skate around the rink faster than Tavares will skate from blueline to blueline.

Lets be honest though, a lot of players who are slower skaters are falling off (Stamkos), but not Tavares. He is still a PPG player and great in faceoffs and very good defensively, not all slower skating veterans suck.
 

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