Tavares announces major decision regarding his tenure as a Leaf

Ever since the Toronto Maple Leafs were defeated by the Florida Panthers in 5 games, the ongoing rumour that has not stopped churning is that the core members of the Maple Leafs have be split up, one way or the other.

Auston Matthews, John Tavares, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander are great regular season performers, but for whatever reason, they can't seem to get it done in the post-season and their high cap hits are placing the Leafs in a purgatory-like state.

Leafs captain John Tavares signed a 7-year deal with a cap hit of $11 million AAV back in the summer of 2018 and has potted 155 goals and 354 points across 360 games over the last 5 years. In the playoffs, he has 11 goals and 22 points in 31 post-season games across that same stretch with 8 points being the most he's recorded - in this year's post-season. These are not bad totals by any means, but it's simply not enough.

The biggest hurdle to a Tavares trade - taking out the fact that he's the captain - is that he possesses a full no-movement clause. When asked about this at the end-of-season press conference earlier today, Tavares responded with:


"I love it here. I made a commitment to be here for seven years. I want to be here."

It certainly doesn't seem like he has any intention of waiving his no-movement clause. He did however mention that he wouldn't mind being shifted to the wing instead being placed down the middle. Tavares also confirmed that he takes being the captain of the Leafs very seriously.

Tavares is like the rest of the core as he still believes in the team, the individual talents, and the fact that they can right the ship without any massive moves:

"I think there's a continued belief in our group here... Obviously winning is extremely difficult... We're continuing to find our way through that do what's necessary."

Something's got to give and with the salary cap barely budging, the Leafs have a lot of pending UFAs they would like to sign but need to maneuver the tight salary cap to get it done. Trading a member of the core also doesn't just have to do with money, it's also about bringing in new blood, new voices, and new perspectives in an otherwise cloudy team.

It may not be Tavares that gets moved - or at least not yet - but for the time being, the captain has stated that he won't waive his no-movement clause and he should be back with the team come training camp.