John Tavares Discussion

[Puckstuff]

Tavares is a career 0.94 points per game for his career and 0.96 points per game on the season so he’s actually been better then his career averages. This is who Tavares is. I was always hoping he would be this 90-100 point guy when we got him playing with such skilled players but he’s just not at that level and he never will be. I’m happy if he can hit 75 points tbh.

 

[zeke]

Tavares is a career 0.94 points per game for his career and 0.96 points per game on the season so he’s actually been better then his career averages. This is who Tavares is. I was always hoping he would be this 90-100 point guy when we got him playing with such skilled players but he’s just not at that level and he never will be. I’m happy if he can hit 75 points tbh.

If he was getting elite minutes you could probably add another 10pts.

 

[mapleleaf979]

Tavares and Nylander aren't the best fit. Nylander wants to rush the puck at speed and Kerfoot on the opposite wing can oblige, but Tavares doesn't want to be dashing up open ice. Nylander has that Forsberg lite type drive where he can one handed shovel the puck and cycle around the offensive zone like he's looking for a parking space, but Tavares is more comfortable in close quarters, using aggressive cuts and changes in direction to shake off defenders. One guy wants free flow, the other hard stops and starts. They can produce together but each one of them seems to want to play a different game.

At times he does, other times he has no interest doing that. Tonight Nylander was engaged, he was protecting the puck and extending plays. If im Keefe or any of his team-mates, id be frustrated watching William Nylander protect the puck like he did tonight with defenders on his back, then instantly get room with a cut back and change of direction in a small area. He is incredible at this but doesnt do it often.

 

[crowsnestmcgee]

the assist on the sandin goal was the first good thing i've seen him do in months. I think we should look for a forward that can play in the top 6.. maybe sub in as second line centre because man JT is slowing that line down

 

[ULF_55]

the assist on the sandin goal was the first good thing i've seen him do in months. I think we should look for a forward that can play in the top 6.. maybe sub in as second line centre because man JT is slowing that line down

Looks like a player that would do well with a Bunting or two, not 2 of the fastest players on the ice.
He's more a board man, and traffic guy.

 

[hotpaws]

Looks like a player that would do well with a Bunting or two, not 2 of the fastest players on the ice.
He's more a board man, and traffic guy.

looks like a player that would do well playing on Mathews wing which would play to to his strength [vulturing around the net] and minimize his weakness [trying to cover the rest of the ice]

the guy can't skate , he made a couple of nice plays on the boards but other than that he was still getting stripped of the puck as well as not being able to keep up with the flow of the play

 

[Twine Tickler]

JT was a beast yesterday. He was engaged in every puck battle, and often times came away with the biscuit. As seen on the Nylander and Sandin goals.

That was his best game in a while, and I really do think he is due for a real breakout game.

We all know what JT is capable of, and we all know he can perform at that level with consistency. I said it yesterday, I will continue to give JT the benefit of the doubt with his recent play. He has given us no reason to believe he has packed it in, and his ability to play the game at a high level is still very much there. It's only a matter of time before he shuts this market up. Last night was a great start

 

[ULF_55]

looks like a player that would do well playing on Mathews wing which would play to to his strength [vulturing around the net] and minimize his weakness [trying to cover the rest of the net]

the guy can't skate , he made a couple of nice plays on the boards but other than that he was still getting stripped of the puck as well as not being able to keep up with the flow of the play

In the D-Zone it is showing more.

 

[1specter]

This shift was vintage JT. Hoping this is a sign that he's back, but let's see.

 

[Twine Tickler]

regardless of points, when was the last time JT was the best player on the team in any given game?

Not to completely throw you under the bus, because there was an element of truth to this statement yesterday. It had been a while since he was the best player on the ice.

But I instantly thought of this post after the game yesterday.

Ask and you shall receive

 

[djdev]

Not to completely throw you under the bus, because there was an element of truth to this statement yesterday. It had been a while since he was the best player on the ice.

But I instantly thought of this post after the game yesterday.

Ask and you shall receive

i did too haha, and look i dont think he played a fantastic game, but in the latter part of the 3rd he was more like the JT we know and love. the thing is, im not asking for more than what he did last night, if he can do that more consistantly im perfectly happy. he doesnt have to be the 47 goal scorer like he was in the 1st year year, he just needs to effect winning more than he has been
it was the 1st period in a long while where he was strong and not getting pushed off the puck easily, thats what hes always been about throughout his career.

a game like that can really help a player in a stretch like JT's.

 

[Twine Tickler]

i did too haha, and look i dont think he played a fantastic game, but in the latter part of the 3rd he was more like the JT we know and love. the thing is, im not asking for more than what he did last night, if he can do that more consistantly im perfectly happy. he doesnt have to be the 47 goal scorer like he was in the 1st year year, he just needs to effect winning more than he has been

a game like that can really help a player in a stretch like JT's.

Yup, I think that game will go straight to his legs. I am not sure how the pucks are not dropping for him at this point. He had a post and an open net that I think Vanecek robbed him on in that 3rd as well. He is close to breaking free of this slump IMO

 

[djdev]

Yup, I think that game will go straight to his legs. I am not sure how the pucks are not dropping for him at this point. He had a post and an open net that I think Vanecek robbed him on in that 3rd as well. He is close to breaking free of this slump IMO

lets hope, i dont like dumping on leaf players, because that means they arent playing up to standards. i want my team and the players who represent my team playing well, its better for everyone lol.

 

[ER89]

This shift was vintage JT. Hoping this is a sign that he's back, but let's see.

No u

 

[Larcos_Unal]

One thing I'd love to see, if at some point in Tavares' 7 year tenure in Toronto he'd manage to run into Barb Underhill our famed skating coach.
It appears that due to COVID and the busy work/life schedule he has yet to meet her. Really hoping that they can become acquainted at some point.

 

[francis246]

One thing I'd love to see, if at some point in Tavares' 7 year tenure in Toronto he'd manage to run into Barb Underhill our famed skating coach.
It appears that due to COVID and the busy work/life schedule he has yet to meet her. Really hoping that they can become acquainted at some point.

Barb has retired, she's no longer with the organization. She's trained another woman who has taken her place in the organization.

 

[meefer]

the assist on the sandin goal was the first good thing i've seen him do in months. I think we should look for a forward that can play in the top 6.. maybe sub in as second line centre because man JT is slowing that line down

I have no words for how bad this post is. "In months", really? That is your take?

 

[Stephen]

These Detroit and Buffalo games sure aren’t fruitful for Tavares.

 

[supermann_98]

So JT is easily the worst of our three $11m forwards, and is 5th in goals among our forward group.

He's got a NTC so he's untradeable even if another team was willing to absorb an $11m AAV contract that will look worse every year moving forward.

He's technically the captain but on the ice it's obvious our team is lead by Matthews, Reilly, and Marner.

What are the options if we go out in the first round again?
Trade - no
Strip captaincy - PR disaster

It irks me that if we go out in the first round again it'll be Marner or Willy who are shown the door and JT comes back as the "leader" of next year's group.

He'd better pick up his game by playoff time or it's gonna get real ugly real quick

 

[Stephen]

John Tavares got a lot of credit for battling through in the Washington game, setting up Nylander for the opening goal, and then having a big response shift after getting rag dolled by Tom Wilson. He took command of the puck, rushed it down the ice, ripped one off the post, dug the puck loose behind the net and helped start the sequence for the game winner. Deserves a ton of credit for that.

My question is, for $11 million per season, why did it take Tom Wilson dumping him on his ass and then JT having to go full Rocky redemption to get that level of 5 on 5 shift impact out of him? Shouldn’t this level of impact happen once a period? Maybe once a game? 2-3 times a week?

It’s bad enough that we always get the sleepwalking Tavares and people get used to it and we accept lowered expectations. It’s just so much worse when you get a glimpse of impact play and realize it almost never happens.

And then the leadership department. Not even sure I want to touch this one. Yes, he’s a lead by example guy who doesn’t really set the best example with his struggles. And nobody would confuse him for Rod Brind’Amour from an inspirational point of view.

 

[JT AM da real deal]

My guess he will lineup at centre for game 1 of playoffs .. if it is a disaster game then Kerfoot will move to centre for game 2 with JT taking draws with JT on left flank playing a wall game ..

 

[Skullz]

I know Tavares has a full no move clause, but lets be honest, those get waived all the time. If we factor in his July 1 bonus, his actual dollars earned over the last three years is quite a bit below his Cap hit and more closely in line to his actual value. I still wonder if we could not find a move for him in the offseason to a non cap team that is happy to have him on the books at 11 aav but only 7 or so in actual dollars. Of course he would have to be willing to waive, so perhaps not Arizona or a full rebuilding team like that.
Likely we are stuck with him though, and I think we need to seriously consider reshuffling the lines. What do people think of perhaps a Kerfoot - Nylander - Kase line as an experiment. Everybody is fast, and would get us a dangerous amount of looks of the rush, albeit they would need to be sheltered defensively. Maybe try something like Spezza - Tavares - Anderson and have more of a grind and cycle line which is what JT likes to do. I understand if the demotion is a non option but that second line is awful and something needs to give.

 

[BrannigansLaw]

1216 days or 105,062,400 seconds remaining on his contract. Got it marked on my calendar.

 

[nuck]

He looked like the old JT tonight. Hopefully this is the turn of the corner.

 

[Leafblooded]

He's like an aging staff member you hope decides to leave soon