The Toronto Maple Leafs own a commanding 2-0 lead against the Florida Panthers in the second-round 2025 Eastern Conference Stanley Cup playoff matchup, and we want to give the former captain, John Tavares, his due. Let’s take a look at just what has he achieved in time in Toronto. And how will this continue to lead the Leafs to playoff success. Let’s dig into the Leafs picture. Because, to consider the Panthers perspective for a second, after all, you’re not in trouble in a series until you’ve lost at home.
Toronto Maple Leafs Take Advantage Of Ottawa Senators’ Poor Discipline
John Tavares Stats are a Reason Why the Leafs are in the Position They’re In
Tavares is a 16-year NHL veteran and his resume speaks for itself. His numbers never jumped off the page. Case in point, nine times he had 60 points and played 19 minutes in the same NHL campaign. Furthermore, Tavares is 67th all time with 1,114 career regular season points. That has him eighth on the active list. He’s currently only two points behind the Ottawa Senators veteran Claude Giroux.
Moreover, in the playoffs, Tavares is starting to build an impressive resume. Even though he’s been in the league so long, if he is about to embark on multiple seasons of deep runs, his career legacy could drastically change. In 70 career playoff games, he has 51 points. In those 70 games, his squads own a 32-38 record. Those numbers are impressive by the longevity factor, but have the potential to skyrocket at lightning speed in the next three-to-four years.
If you really study the stats for John Tavares this postseason, you’ll see a lot of green flags. So far, through eight games, he has three goals and two assists. In three of the last four games, he’s been at 19:13 of ice or above. Also, in his past three games, his faceoff win percentage hasn’t been below 59%. C’mon, he’s getting after it and succeeding.
The Leafs are On a Mission in ’25
Tavares was named the 25th captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs back in the summer of ’19. Since that time, the Leafs have struggled to find continued success in the postseason. However, it really has been for a lack of talent. Really, the naming of Auston Matthews as captain could only possibly help benefit the young man’s confidence. If he was ready for the passing of the torch, as they say, only time will tell.
With Tavares, the 2024-25 Toronto Maple Leafs roster has a tremendous supporting cast for the future Hall-of-Famer. Overall, the Leafs have ten players with at least four points. The Sens proved to be a better test than it initially appeared after the Leafs jumped out to the 3-0 series lead. Conversely, the Leafs depth and talent shone through, and continues to do so. William Nylander leads the charge with 13 points, Mitch Marner has ten points, and even a veteran like Max Pacioretty has six point in only six games.
As the two Leaf centres playing nearly two thirds of the game, check out these stats.
When you consider the amount of the game they command, it can be quite impressive. With the two centres playing as consistent as they have, it has allowed played like Pacioretty and Max Domi to play their game, and that coincides nicely with playoff hockey. Furthermore, there’s potentially only a couple wins left of this series versus the team from Sunrise, Florida. As the series shifts to South Florida, the Leafs high-end depth will continue to give the Panthers matchup challenges despite the advantage of last change. But when your roster contains Aleksander Barkov, you have an element of surety with him on the ice. It’ll be a great series.
Main Photo Credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images
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