John Tavares shows confidence in himself and Maple Leafs with new contract
Veteran leader signs four-year contract extension to stay in Toronto.
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John Tavares’ journey with the Maple Leafs has been amazing and incredible.
The 34-year-old veteran used those descriptions on Friday afternoon during a Zoom call with media, not long after signing a new pact with the Leafs, one that comes with an average annual value of $4.38 million US over four years.
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We can only imagine the superlatives Tavares would use if the Leafs have true playoff success during what remains of his tenure in Toronto and win the Stanley Cup.
Advancing to the second round in the playoffs twice in Tavares’ first seven years with the Leafs was enough to convince him that the team is on the right track to finally breaking through.
An asterisk comes with this off-season, though, as the Leafs and star winger Mitch Marner are heading for a divorce, with those papers likely to be officially signed on Tuesday once National Hockey League free agency opens and, if not, presumably no later than Wednesday.
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That Marner is bound to leave after nine seasons with the Leafs isn’t news, of course, to Tavares. It doesn’t make what appears to be an ironclad certainty much easier, though, for the wise centre.
“I think the world of Mitchy, first and foremost, as a person,” Tavares said. “It’s a great friendship that has developed. We’ve also had great chemistry from the times that we’ve played together throughout our time here.
“If he does end up leaving, it’s a very difficult player and person to replace, what he brings to the team on and off the ice.
“It’s going to be up to (Leafs general manager Brad Treliving) and the club to find their way and how they go about that. It’s unique.
“You have to move forward if that’s what happens. What is available to the club is the dollars that wouldn’t have been if Mitchy does stay.
“You always hold out hope that a person and a player like Mitchy ends up staying and it works out. But you’re also realistic of the situation and where things are at and what potentially could happen. If he does move on, you wish him the best.”
We’re not going to know for a while whether a Marner departure could be linked to change in the Leafs’ DNA. Simply because Marner leaves and another player or two is signed — whether it’s Brad Marchand or anyone else — is not a guarantee that the Leafs will be any closer to winning the Cup.
A DNA change, for some, might have meant that Tavares had to go as well. The reality for the Leafs, though, is that as much as there will be no replacement for Marner’s production on the open market, there’s no player who was going to come in and fill Tavares’ shoes. His 38 goals, on top of everything else he does, were the most among any player headed for unrestricted free agency.
What does a DNA change with the Leafs mean to Tavares? He used the words “Florida” and “standard.”
“How do we get better?” Tavares said. “And what do I have to do individually to push myself, evolve, make myself better, so we can ultimately be the last one standing and do what we’re all driven to do and want to accomplish?
“We see how difficult that is and what a team like Florida has done, winning two years in a row, three years in a row being in the final, and that’s the standard.
“There’s a lot of reflection and looking in the mirror and knowing what we have to do to continue to find our way and get through the challenges that we’ve had.”
The Tavares contract is a great one for the Leafs, hometown discount and all that, and it speaks to Tavares’ character. He could have had, in all likelihood, a contract that would have carried an AAV of $8 million had he hit the open market.
That Tavares signed for just over half of that leaves Treliving a bigger piece of salary-cap pie to use in the coming months and it’s no wonder that the GM on Friday went out of his way to praise Tavares when much more money would have been available in free agency.
We have to leave some room for the idea that Tavares won’t get back to the vicinity of 38 goals in 2025-26 and beyond. After all, that amount last year tied for his second-highest total in 16 NHL seasons.
Tavares acknowledged that the disappointment of not winning in each passing season “only gets harder” and that his “runway gets shorter and shorter.”
Tavares wants nothing more than to be a difference-maker for the Leafs. That hasn’t happened yet when it counts, as he has 31 points (17 goals and 14 assists) in 51 playoff games with Toronto.
His confidence in himself is as steadfast as his confidence in the team.
“The belief in my game and where I think it’s headed, and my ability to continue to play well and play at a high level, I think is stronger than ever,” Tavares said. “I’m clearly not on the front nine, but the back nine, and I am aware of that.
“The growth over the years and some of the hurdles that we’ve overcome, and certainly this year, Chief (coach Craig Berube) coming in with a new philosophy, a different way we wanted to play, different mindset, has been really positive.
“The guys who have been here for a long time, you can see that evolution. You can feel it. It’s something we can really build on.
“All the guys, talking to a number of them since the end of the season, know how badly we want to find our way and do something special here in Toronto that hasn’t been done in a long time.
“Even though I left some money out there, I’ve done pretty well. I’m still doing pretty well. And get to play for an amazing club in a great city, the place where I’m from, and a team that has a real opportunity to win.”
Tavares has four more years to see the journey come to a point in the only way he can happily envision.
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