Tavares considered Habs before signing with Leafs
When John Tavares sat with himself and his family this summer, debating where he would play this season, one of the choices he entertained was Montreal.
The Canadiens were in town Monday for a pre-season game, and Tavares was asked about Montreal, which is as much a hockey hotbed as Toronto.
The Maple Leafs centre, who considered six teams, said after all the thought that went into his decision, he realized he couldn’t make everyone happy.
“I felt fortunate to have the interest that I had,” Tavares said. “There was a lot of interest and that’s why I picked six teams (to narrow down his focus) ... in the end, I couldn’t make everyone happy, I had to the decision that was best for me.” LEAFS FALL TO HABS: Gunning for the backup job, Maple Leafs goalie Garret Sparks allowed five goals in playing the full 60 minutes as a Toronto roster that looked more like the Toronto Marlies dropped a 5-1decision to the Laval Rocket, oops, make that the Montreal Canadiens.
The Leafs had won their first four games while putting out a team comprised of at least half NHLers, with Tavares and Auston Matthews starring in alternating games.
But Monday night, if the announced crowd of 18,843 was hoping to see a big name at the Scotiabank Arena, they were woefully disappointed. Connor Carrick and his $1.3 million (U.S.) salary made him the highest-paid Leaf to suit up against the Habs. The two teams have a rematch Wednesday in Montreal, with much better lineups expected. BRACCO SCORING: Jeremy Bracco has shown some offensive flair in camp so far but he understands if he is take a bigger role this year with the Toronto Marlies, he has to improve his defensive game. He says he’s working on it.
“Playing without the puck is a big thing,” said Bracco. “Going up (in leagues) you have the puck less and less. You’ve got to be able to into open spots to get the puck more. Playing away from the puck is important, and something I’ve got to work on for sure.”
He’s also been getting a daily message from coach Mike Babcock.
“Move my feet. I think he’s said that throughout the camp. Maybe once or twice at practice. It’s definitely something he harps on.” RIGHT PEOPLE: Leafs coach Mike Babcock says he hasn’t predetermined what positions his extra players will be. The team can carry three extra beyond the 20 that dress for games. Typically teams carry two extra defenceman for balance in practice.
“Just the right people on the team,” said Babcock. “Obviously we’d like Willie (restricted free agent William Nylander) to sign a deal and come back, so that would give us an extra forward, so that would probably mean seven (defencemen.) HYMAN OUT: Frederik Gauthier worked on the wing in practice John Tavares and Mitch Marner while Zach Hyman remained out with a hip pointer injury. “He’s feeling way better,” said Babcock. “There’s no reason to rush Hyman. We’ll take it on the slow side, for sure.”