John Tavares News: Pro Sports Daily

Tavares breaks through in OT to halt Caps' streak

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October 31

Washington Times

"John Tavares hit two posts, was robbed on a one-timer and thought for sure he had an assist on a beautiful backhand pass. Through 60 minutes, the latest "Next One" was one of the best players on the ice but couldn't crack the score sheet. No worries; Tavares kept working and delivered an upset for the upstart New York Islanders in overtime. Tavares hit Mark Streit with a beautiful centering pass as the Islanders defeated the Washington Capitals 4-3 on Friday night at Verizon Center. "Good players make the plays," Caps center Brendan Morrison said. "He's a young kid, but you can tell he's highly skilled. He's going to be a good player in this league." The first pick in June's draft had ..."

'09 top draft picks make the cut, staying in NHL

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October 29

NHL.com

"Six players taken in the 2009 Entry Draft made their NHL team's opening-night roster. Making the League is one thing; staying there is another. But for the special six from this June's draft, they all passed their first major test. John Tavares (No. 1, Islanders), Victor Hedman (No. 2, Lightning), Matt Duchene (No. 3, Colorado), Evander Kane (No. 4, Thrashers), Dmitry Kulikov (No. 14, Panthers) and Ryan O'Reilly (No. 33, Avalanche) haven't all passed the 10-game threshold, but all have been told that they should look into permanent housing. Teams have nine games to evaluate their teenage prospects before having to make a decision on whether to keep them -- and activate their entry-level ..."

Islanders' Tavares takes center stage

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October 17

Buffalo News

"Martin Biron sees John Tavares as the ideal guy to sit around with and watch football. "He's a Bills fan, so on Sunday we get together, we watch the games, we have a lot of fun," said the New York Islanders goaltender, who spent parts of eight seasons with the Buffalo Sabres. Biron also see Tavares as the ideal guy around whom to build a team. The Isles are doing just that. The new-look Islanders visited HSBC Arena on Friday, giving Buffalonians their first chance to see the No. 1 overall pick in June's draft. He entered the contest with two goals and three assists in his first four games and added to his total with a goal during the Sabres' 6-3 win. "It's definitely been great," Tavares ..."

Senators defeat Tavares-led Isles 3-2

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October 9

Ottawa Citizen

"Same player, same building, different circumstance. At the Senators home opener, they came to bury John Tavares, not to praise him, as they did when he wore Canada's colours and helped deliver a World Junior championship here just nine months ago. "It seems like yesterday," Tavares said, before the second game of his NHL career. Lessons come daily for the 19-year-old, selected first overall by the New York Islanders last summer, a fallen franchise's great saviour. In his first game, Tavares learned he could score at this level, producing a goal and assist in an overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Against the Senators, the Franchise discovered if you stand around with your head down, ..."

Senators ready for Tavares

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October 8

Ottawa Sun

"The last time John Tavares stood on the ice at Scotiabank Place, he was wearing a gold medal around his neck -- as a proud member of Team Canada. It's a memory Erik Karlsson, the flashy young Senators defenceman, who won the silver medal with Sweden at the world junior championship, would rather forget. Fast forward a year and Tavares returns to Ottawa as a New York Islander, the first overall pick in June's draft. Tonight, Tavares and Karlsson will meet again, but this time in the NHL. It'll be Karlsson's first regular-season game on home ice, while it's Tavares' first NHL game on home soil. "I'm just trying to forget that I ended up second last year," said Karlsson with a smile. Tavares ..."

Spotlight's on Tavares

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October 8

New York Post

"John Tavares received plenty of scrutiny before his first NHL game on Saturday at Nassau Coliseum, but that figures to pale in comparison to what he's in for tonight, when he makes his Islanders' debut in Canada against Ottawa (7:00; MSG+2, WMJC). "I grew up there and won World Juniors there, so there's going to be a lot of attention," Tavares said after the team's practice in Syosset yesterday. "At this level, that's part of it." Scott Gordon isn't overly concerned with how the 19-year-old rookie will handle things in his native country. "If anybody is prepared for it, it's him," Gordon said of Tavares, who grew up near Toronto. "He's been under a microscope for a long time and I'm sure ..."

Penguins ruin Tavares' debut with Islanders

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October 4

Pittsburgh Tribune Review

"Dear John. It'll only get better from here. Best, Sid. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and New York Islanders franchise prospect John Tavares each posted goal-and-assist games, but Crosby's club is where Tavares can only hope to take his — and the grit of a champion is what separated the Penguins and Islanders on Saturday night at Nassau Coliseum. Third-period rally goals by defenseman Mark Eaton and Ruslan Fedotenko earned the Penguins one point, and they snagged another one in the shootout with consecutive scores by defenseman Kris Letang and Crosby to down the Islanders, 4-3. "It's not often you can play just 20 good minutes and win the game," Eaton said. "We were fortunate to get the ..."

Tavares eclipsed by Lighthouse failure

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October 4

New York Post

"After months of waiting, the Islanders finally got to see their reward last night. John Tavares, the Isles' No. 1 draft pick, scored a power-play goal and added an assist in his NHL debut, a season-opening 4-3 shootout loss to the Penguins at a sold-out Nassau Coliseum against Pittsburgh. "It was a [heck] of a game," Tavares said. But it became clear again last night that the young forward's future on Long Island -- and that of the organization -- is still tenuous at best. Just minutes before Tavares took the ice for the first time, team owner Charles Wang said he was "disgusted" that yesterday's self-imposed deadline regarding approval for his Lighthouse project that would include a ..."

Penguins ruin Tavares' debut with Islanders

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October 4

Pittsburgh Tribune Review

"Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and New York Islanders franchise prospect John Tavares each posted goal-and-assist games, but Crosby's club is where Tavares can only hope to take his — and the grit of a champion is what separated the Penguins and Islanders on Saturday night at Nassau Coliseum. Third-period rally goals by defenseman Mark Eaton and Ruslan Fedotenko earned the Penguins one point, and they snagged another one in the shootout with consecutive scores by defenseman Kris Letang and Crosby to down the Islanders, 4-3. "It's not often you can play just 20 good minutes and win the game," Eaton said. "We were fortunate to get the win." The Penguins (2-0-0) were fortunate in 2005 when ..."

Penguins start 2-0 after shootout win; Crosby outduels Tavares

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October 4

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"He's a pretty special young player, this John Tavares. Scored one goal and set up another in his first game in the National Hockey League, and pretty much made everyone in the sellout crowd of 16,234 -- as well as everyone on both teams -- pay attention every time he went over the boards at Nassau Coliseum last night. But as good as Tavares was in the Penguins' 4-3 shootout victory against the New York Islanders -- and as good as he will be for many years -- he learned last night just how high the bar of excellence can be set in this game. Sidney Crosby showed him. Crosby scored the Penguins' first goal, assisted on their second, then netted the shootout-clinching one that allowed them to ..."

Penguins start 2-0 after shootout win; Crosby outduels Tavares

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October 4

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"He's a pretty special young player, this John Tavares. Scored one goal and set up another in his first game in the National Hockey League, and pretty much made everyone in the sellout crowd of 16,234 -- as well as everyone on both teams -- pay attention every time he went over the boards at Nassau Coliseum last night. But as good as Tavares was in the Penguins' 4-3 shootout victory against the New York Islanders -- and as good as he will be for many years -- he learned last night just how high the bar of excellence can be set in this game. Sidney Crosby showed him. Crosby scored the Penguins' first goal, assisted on their second, then netted the shootout-clinching one that allowed them to ..."

The torch is passed to Tavares with hopes of lighting up Island

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October 3

Toronto Star

"It's a hockey fantasy we've seen play out before. A Canadian teenager is drafted first overall, bunks with the captain's family in his new city, develops with other young players on the roster, helps save NHL hockey in his adopted home and eventually hoists the Stanley Cup. That, of course, is Sidney Crosby's career, twittered down to size. So isn't it appropriate that when Oakville's John Tavares, the latest shinny saviour from north of the 49th, makes his NHL debut for the Islanders here Saturday it will be against Crosby's Penguins in a hockey barn that is antiquated and under the threat of being vacated. If Crosby passes the torch, Tavares might use it to ignite a passion for hockey ..."

Tavares makes Isles' home debut

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September 24

New York Post

"Nassau Coliseum was not a pleasant place to be last year. Not with a team bereft with injuries, the worst record in the league -- as well as it being Nassau Coliseum. Virtually the lone bright spot was the hope that the Islanders would get the top pick, and that it would be a player almost none of the fans had seen. The fans got their wish and, last night, John Tavares made his home debut in a 4-2 preseason loss to the Devils. His entry into the game 26 seconds in drew the biggest cheers of the night from the announced crowd of 8256 -- more than twice the actual attendance. "It was really special," Tavares said of the reception. On the ice, the center did nothing to stand out, yet Scott ..."

Arena flap puts cloud over debut of Tavares

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September 23

New York Post

"Islander super-rookie John Tavares plays his first game at Nassau Coliseum tonight in a debut fans have been anticipating since he was drafted first overall in June. But whether he or the team remain on Long Island long-term is unknown. With the Isles off in Kansas City playing the Kings in a preseason game last night, which they lost 4-2, owner Charles Wang was back at Hofstra, trying to convince local officials to back his "Lighthouse Project" -- a locally controversial mix of housing, office, entertainment and convention space that includes turning the Coliseum into a state-of-the-art arena. Wang has said the project is the only way of keeping the money-losing Isles on Long Island. ..."

Uncle of Islanders' Tavares a NLL Legend

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July 18

New York Post

"You could make the argument, as people have, that John Tavares is the best ever to play his sport. Hyperbole about an 18-year-old who has yet to play an NHL game? No. Instead, it's an accurate assessment of John Tavares, the 40-year-old star of the Buffalo Bandits of the National Lacrosse League, where the elder Tavares has played since 1992. Now his nephew will try to have similar success, or at least approach it, for the Islanders, who made him the top pick overall last month. "My uncle has done great things and made our name in the sport of lacrosse," Tavares said. "And I'd like to do the same in hockey." His new team is counting on it. Tavares' jersey already is the Isles' most popular ..."

Tavares Faces Pen-ultimate Start

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July 16

New York Post

"John Tavares officially became an Islander yesterday, signing a three-year entry level contract. And the NHL isn't wasting any time putting the current No. 1 pick on display. The Isles, who haven't drawn much interest around the league this century, will open their season -- and the John Tavares era -- on Oct. 3 at the Coliseum against Sidney Crosby and the defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins. It will be the first real NHL test for Tavares, who will be 19 by then. He finished his first prospect camp on Long Island yesterday -- with the Isles announcing that the contract was done. "It's nice to have it behind me," said Tavares of the contract. Tavares and the rest of his new ..."

John Tavares agrees to contract

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July 15

Newsday

"No. 1 overall draft pick John Tavares has agreed to a three-year entry level contract with the Islanders. No terms of the deal were immediately available, but the maximum salary, including signing bonus is $900,000. Other attainable bonuses will inflate the value of the contract to $3.75 million per season. Tavares said he's in no rush to start spending the fortune earned through all his junior accomplishments as the Ontario Hockey League's all-time leading scorer. "It's a great opportunity to play in the National Hockey League and be a pro, but I want to stick with what got me here and the work habits I've had and everything I've put into the game of hockey," Tavares said. "It's really ..."

Tavares shoots it straight about life in spotlight

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July 13

Newsday

columnist Jim Baumbach

"In this constantly evolving social media world where so many pro athletes are turning to Twitter to converse directly with fans, it's logical to think an 18-year-old budding star would be at the forefront. But when I asked John Tavares Saturday if he planned to use Twitter or Facebook, he answered before the question was even finished. "No." Don't take that to mean Tavares doesn't want to connect with fans. Watching him sign autographs and pose for photographs with the handful of fans at the second day of the Islanders rookie camp was a sign he understands the importance of fostering a positive relationship with the paying public. But the first impression I got from meeting The Face of ..."

Islanders' top draft pick John Tavares is fresh start for struggling franchise

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July 9

New York Daily News

"The ice has long been melted at Nassau Coliseum, and so too, apparently, have the 2008-09 standings. Because with his consolation prize for a dead-last finish sitting calmly beside him Wednesday, Islanders GM Garth Snow strode to a podium where the center faceoff circle should be and declared: "This is an exciting time to be a New York Islander. It's an exciting time to be a New York Islander fan." What would be truly exciting for Islander fans is if they could hear Snow say that in January, or April, or anytime before the summer. On a sun-splashed afternoon on Long Island, the Islanders bunkered inside the Coliseum to hand the keys to their franchise over to an 18-year-old who now has one ..."

Top Pick Excited To Help Isles Rebuild

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July 9

New York Post

"John Tavares said all the right things yesterday. When asked if he could do for the Islanders what Sidney Crosby did for the Penguins, the Islanders' recent first-overall pick said: "I want to be part of the team. It's not just about me." He's got a point, but the fact is, the Islanders got more than 10,000 fans to show up at the Nassau Coliseum to watch him get drafted -- on TV -- and had several hundred more come yesterday to his introductory press conference. Tavares, who turns 19 in September, will skate for the first time with his new team tomorrow during minicamp and will be the focal point from the first game of the season on. "We've got guys around him who will help him," general ..."