CAPTAINCY THE LEAST OF TAVARES’ WORRIES
Free-agent acquisition believes the team will hand out a ‘C’ when the time is right
It was almost exactly five years ago to the day when New York Islanders general manager Garth Snow called John Tavares and let him know that he was going to be named the team’s captain.
By then, the phone call was a mere formality.
After spending four seasons in New York, it was clear to everyone involved this was Tavares’ team. The No. 1 overall pick, who had led the Islanders in scoring in each of his first four seasons, was by far their best player and on-ice leader. So when Mark Streit left to sign with Philadelphia in 2013, there was really no question as to who would assume the vacant captaincy.
“I felt like the time was right,” said Tavares. “It was a really good transition.”
Tavares is hoping that when the Toronto Maple Leafs name their next captain, the decision as to who gets the ‘C’ will be just as obvious, even if he’s not the guy named.
“I didn’t come here and expect the captaincy,” Tavares said during an NHL players media tour Friday. “When I went through the process (of signing with the Leafs), it was how I could add to and help this hockey team. (The captaincy) was never part of our discussions.
“I never worried if I was going to be the captain or not.”
In other words, Tavares has no problem if Auston Matthews is the next captain. Or if the Leafs decide to go with defenceman Morgan Rielly or veteran forward Patrick Marleau or push the decision off for another year.
More and more, that’s becoming a possibility.
With less than a week to go before training camp, Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas told TSN’s Bob McKenzie the team will likely not have a captain to start the season and that there is no rush to change that. And why would they?
The Leafs didn’t seem to be hurt by a lack of leadership when qualifying for the playoffs each of the last two seasons. The same goes for the Vegas Golden Knights, who won their division and advanced to the Stanley Cup final without a captain in their first season in existence.
“I think the way (Dubas) is handling it, with patience and making sure that it’s the right person, is the right way to do it,” said Matthews. “Everybody’s a leader in their own way. We have a young core of guys, guys who’ve been here for a while, and I don’t think you need a letter to be able to lead by example or to speak up in the room. I think everybody’s close to each other where if something needs to be said, it’s going to be said.”
The last time the Leafs named a captain, it turned into bit of a disaster with former general manager Brian Burke slapping the ‘C’ on Dion Phaneuf ’s jersey after he had played 26 games in Toronto. It might as well have been an anchor.
Dubas has learned from that experience, as well as what has gone on in Montreal, where Max Pacioretty is on the trading block three years after teammates voted him in as captain, and also in Carolina, where Jordan Staal and Justin Faulk were co-captains last year.
“There becomes a sense of who it should be,” said Tavares, who believes the rightful captain will emerge eventually. “I think the players don’t have to directly say who they think it should be, but by the actions and kind of things you go through in a season and the reads you get from players in how certain things are handled. It’s the guy who represents the team.”
At the end of the day, the captaincy matters more to those outside the dressing room. The players know who the leaders on the team are. And sometimes they’re not even wearing a letter on the front of their jersey. Right now, you could pick several players who fit that bill.
That includes Tavares.
“He was definitely one of the better leaders who I’ve played with,” said former teammate Anders Lee.
It could also be Matthews, even if he is only 20 and has never been a captain at any level.
“I think it’s his presence not just on the ice, but in the lockerroom,” Tavares said of Matthews. “He’s just one of those guys people can look to, to be more than just a talented player. He’s a driving force of our hockey team. There’s many great guys in our room. Whoever it is, we’ll support it.”
I think the way (Kyle Dubas) is handling it, with patience and making sure that it’s the right person, is the right way.