When veteran John Tavares re-signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs to a four-year, $17.52 million contract extension last year, many had predicted him to provide some decent value for the team going forward. But at age 35 and counting entering the 2025-26 NHL season, Leafs fans understood that he could eventually be slowing down and may need the odd rest or two to maintain his overall effectiveness on the ice.
However, one thing that Maple Leafs fans certainly didn’t expect from Tavares this season was the fact that he went out to play all 82 games in the schedule when all was said and done. More significantly, the 35-year-old center was the ONLY Leafs player to suit up for all of their games this season.
No one really thought John Tavares would play all 82 games
In doing so, it was the sixth time in his career that Tavares would play in 82 games, with his last occurrence dating all the way back in his 2018-19 campaign when he first joined the Maple Leafs. Of note is the fact that he did also manage to dress in every game during the 2020-21 season as well, but that year was the COVID-shortened schedule where teams played only 56 games in total.
But even more impressive had been the fact that Tavares had kept up his quality of play despite the long, gruelling season with the Maple Leafs. The 35-year-old former captain would record 31 goals and 40 assists for 71 points in total for Toronto. That marked his eighth season of 30 goals or more and ninth season of 70 points or more during his illustrious NHL career to date. Not only that, Tavares did all of that while averaging over 18 minutes a night while continuing to be a wizard in the face-off dot, winning 57.6% of the face-off in over 1376 draws.
Remember also that Tavares is the second-oldest player on this current Maple Leafs team, with only Chris Tanev being older by nine months. So for the 35-year-old center to be playing that much with all the wear and tear and still be a force on ice is quite impressive under any circumstances in the NHL today, with the speed and physicality of the game having increased dramatically.
Nevertheless, the Leafs will have the services of Tavares through the 2028-29 season as Toronto will hope to turn things around before he eventually heads towards his retirement. Rebuild or not, if he can manage to continue to play at such a level, then that turnaround for the Maple Leafs could come even sooner than expected. No matter how you put it, Tavares should remain a key piece of the Toronto franchise going forward.
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