Leafs captain John Tavares addresses his recent struggles
Since the calendar turned in 2022, the Leafs seem to have reverted to a style of play that was most common under former coach Mike Babcock, aside from the first two games of the new year that is. The Leafs embarked on a 6-game road trip following two home wins against the lowly Senators and free-falling Oilers and it has taken us Leaf fans through a rollercoaster of emotions. The Leafs had built themselves comfortable leads in all but their game against Arizona, only to squander them countless times, leading to a 3-2-1 record.
While the defensive structure has been absent during these blown leads, the Leafs are also not getting much help from their captain. Over the 6-game stretch, Tavares has managed a measly 2 points (1G, 1A) with both coming in back-to-back games against the Blues and Rangers. Unfortunately for Tavares, the entire road trip, the Leafs were playing a "run and gun" style because their defensive structure was poor and for the slower captain, a strictly North-South game hinders his abilities with and without the puck. He has always struggled with his foot speed and his age does not help.
Tavares recently spoke about his lack of production over the road trip stating, "I know I can be a lot better with my game and helping out my linemates and doing a better job. So I take that onus and responsibility on myself to go out there and execute at a higher level and more consistently."
The key takeaway for me in that quote is him mentioning consistency. Not only does JT need to be more consistent, but the entire team needs to get back to the consistency they had prior to the extended holiday break. If we look at the Leafs' 12 games prior to the road trip, Tavares had 18 points (6G, 12A) and the Leafs were playing a much more sound defensive game. A more structured game-flow is essential for Tavares to produce at the level he expects from himself. The structure allows him to rely more on his vision, hockey IQ and skill rather than his subpar foot speed.
Coming off of the 6 game road trip and at Monday's practice, Tavares was reunited with Mitch Marner. This combination has worked well in the past, and while Keefe says he wants to see how teams combat having a superstar or two on three separate lines, I think the hidden motive behind the line juggling could be to use Marner as a catalyst to get more production from Tavares, leaning on past performance as a key factor in the decision.
Hopefully the break between the end of the road trip and Wednesday's game and being reunited with Marner will help JT break out of his slump and get back to the consistent point producer he has been throughout his career.
