Hold on a second, Leaf Nation. Put those champagne corks back in and stop planning the Stanley Cup route down Bay Street, because the Leafs don’t have John Tavares yet. And they never will. Rumour says that John Ferguson Jr. has offered the 17-year-old Oshawa Generals star John Tavares a contract to play with the Leafs’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Toronto Marlies. While nothing has been set in stone, this is not something for Leaf fans to cheer about.
Last season with Oshawa, Tavares passed Wayne Gretzkey’s single season goal record at 76. With stats and comparisons to Gretzkey, Tavares has been touted as the next great player and a potential first overall draft pick in 2009. As the projected number one overall, the Leafs stand little chance at picking up Tavares in the draft unless they tank next season completely, and that still would not guarantee anything.
Instead, John Ferguson has offered Tavares a one-year contract in the AHL, after which he can enter the draft and get signed by whoever gets the first pick, if he so chooses. The only problem with this scenario is that AHL rules specify that players must be 18 as of September 15. Since Tavares turns 18 on September 20, the rules must be changed in order for him to don a Marlies jersey. This seems unlikely, as exceptions weren’t made for,players like former number-one pick Alexander Ovechkin.
That’s where this contract comes into play. If Tavares is allowed to play in the AHL, he must bypass the draft in 2009 and play for the Marlies until he is 21 in order to play with the Leafs. Tavares would be an unrestricted free agent, and Leafs fans can keep hoping he loves his city more than a fat paycheck.
But let’s be realistic. Tavares will never turn down big bucks at 19 to play for the Leafs at 21. It would be crazy. What if he got hurt? His payday will be cut down substantially, and his NHL career could potentially be over before it even began. Nowadays, players want and expect the big bucks if they are a high draft pick. Money, sadly, is the determining factor when a young player moves to professional sports. So if Tavares is allowed to play for the Marlies, it will be a one-year deal, nothing more.
In offering Tavares the contract, Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment is also getting a quick money grab from the oh-so-faithful citizens of Toronto. Putting a name like John Tavares on the Marlies will cause John Doe, who doesn’t really watch or follow hockey, to buy tickets because he has heard Tavares’ name mentioned in the same breath as Wayne Gretzkey and Sidney Crosby. This potential contract is an attempt at raising attendance at Marlies games—which is abysmal as best. They average 3,224 people per game, third worst in the AHL. Putting a recognized name in the AHL will boost Marlies sales and bring more money to MLSE.
So the attempted signing of John Tavares is not MLSE’s way of trying to grow our farm system. That hasn’t been their priority in years. All they care about is the almighty dollar. MLSE saw a loophole, a chance to offer the next big thing a minor league contract so they can boost the sales of the Marlies and grab a few bucks in the meantime. John Tavares is not the first step in rebuilding a team that has not seen the Stanley Cup for 40 years. He is just another example of the disaster that is the Maple Leaf franchise
