Top 3 Milestones Leafs Could Achieve This Season
No. 1: John Tavares - 60 Points Away From 1,100 Points
Tavares is 60 points away from reaching 1,100 points and only has one season where he recorded less than 60 points, so I'd expect him to hit this again. Not only do I expect him to hit it, but I expect him to blow past it and be back to the point-per-game player we remember.
Is Tavares the most underrated superstar of the past decade? The former No. 1 overall pick hasn't had the playoff success that other high-end picks near his age (Patrick Kane, Sidney Crosby, Steven Stamkos) have, but he's been incredibly consistent. A leader, on and off the ice, Tavares averages 30 goals per year and should be celebrated for joing the organization in 2018.
Sure, the team hasn't quite lived up to the playoff expectation, but Tavares has been apart of some magical memories, including an overtime goal in Game 6 of the First Round in 2023 to send the Tampa Bay Lightning packing. That was the biggest moment this team has had since 2004, so that goal should be everything we need to know about him.
There have only been 66 players in NHL history who have scored 1,100 or more points, so if he can achieve that number, he should be well on his way to a Hall of Fame career. Hopefully he's the first Leafs captain to lift a Stanley Cup since 1967, but we can't bank on that.