john tavares

[daveyou]

ill say it right off the bat that im not really big on hockey. never did. i dont know what icing is still.....lol!

i remember playing "nhl 97" or something like that on nintendo and sega genesis back in the good ole days and damn, i loved that hockey game. wonder if wii has that on their virtual games...hmm...

ok ok, back to the topic at hand

being in nyc, i've heard a lot about john tavares. #1 pick last year but sadly, plays for the islanders....

i guess my question is, is tavares one of those "can't miss" guys? do you see in the upper tier (crosby, AO) or below like stamkos, kane, toews, kopitar? or below that?

i guess the level of excitement that nyc may have should we get one of those "can't miss" players through the draft and plays up to or exceeds their potential has me looking into tavares stuff

i mean, the knicks and the mets haven't drafted right in so long....at least we have mark sanchez for the jets....

what are your guys thoughts on tavares?

dave

 

[lumm0x]

I'll admit that I have not watched a ton of his play. From what I have seen I don't think he comes anywhere close to the caliber of an Ovechkin or Crosby. I think he will be a guy that will lead his team in points year in and out and his ceiling will be partially dependant on the quality of his surrounding talent. For him to close on 25 goals and over 50 points as a rookie on a poor team shows he is a well above average talent. He may take a few seasons to blossom into a guy that single handedly changes games. I think the comparisons with players such as Kopitar, Toews, etc. are valid. Tavares is of course different in skill set than those two and they each play a unique game, but performance wise they should be similar. I look for him to be in the top 20 point scorers each season but rarely getting a peek at the top 10.

 

[daveyou]

thanks for the input! yeah, as much as i do not know about hockey, i know enough to know that guys like crosby and AO is equivalent to lebron and kobe. lol!

take a guy like stamkos, another #1 pick 2 years ago

top of my head, his total points were in the 50s during his rc year

this year, his full 2nd season, almost doubled his point output which is damn impressive

does tavares have the "it" factor to improve somewhere along that line? i know it's impossible to tell since i think the lightnings have better players on their team than the islanders (correct me if i am wrong), and almost doubling their points on the following from 20 - 40 is a HUGE difference than 50 - 100. lol!

dave

 

[pghbuccos]

I agree Tavares is among the 2nd tier skill level wise of NHL players like Stamkos, Kane, Toews, Kopitar etc. he had a very similar rookie season compared to Stamkos but I don't see him having the same jump as Stamkos had in his 2nd season. as you both already mentioned he will be a solid NHL player for years to come and will improve as the team around him improves. I think he and Kyle Okposo will become the 2 players to fear on the Islanders but they need to add a few more scoring threats or they will remain a lower tier team.

 

[G $MONEY$]

Coming into the NHL draft and a couple years before the draft, yes John Tavares was labeled as a "Can't miss" prospect. The CHL (Canadian Hockey League) actually made a new "rule" for Tavares that allowed him to enter the OHL (Ontario Hockey League) as a 14 year old!!!! He entered the OHL as a 14 year old playing with guys who were 16-20 years old!!! He had much more press then Steven Stamkos coming into their respective drafts. Actually when Steven Stamkos was drafted (and he was also very highly regarded) i still can remember the draft analysis talking about Tavares and the 2009 draft.

Tavares was so highly rated as a 17 year old that he was the focus of an unsuccessful push to have the NHL's draft rules changed to allow him to participate in the 2008 Entry Draft, as well as an attempt to allow him to play in the American Hockey League as a 17-year-old in 2007. Thats how good he was/is! They didn't have these "talks" for Crosby, but they sure did for Tavares.

Will Tavares develop into a superstar NHLer like Crosby and Stamkos? Thats anyone's guess, but it might take him a couple years longer to do this as Tavares was not "blessed" with having Superstar players playing with him in his rookie year liked Crosby and Stamkos did. Crosby and Stamkos had guys like Mario Lemieux, Mark Recchi, John Leclair, ziggy Pallfy, Martin St Louis, Vincent Lecavalier and Brad Richards to play with and learn from in their rookie seasons. Tavares hasn't had any players of that caliber to play with and learn from in his rookie season. Heck Sidney Crosby moved in with and practiced with Mario Lemieux since the day he was drafted!!! Imagine how fast Tavares would have developed had he been given the same opportunities???

 

[daveyou]

btw, my favorite tavares card in my collection

[center:3sxiym90]

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dave

 

[thehamiltonian]

Awesome Tavares card.

I would place Tavares in the tier with Kane, Toews, etc.

Crosby and Ovechkin are on a planet of their own, but if Stamkos keeps up this production (50 goals / 95 points), he's quickly going to force himself up into that realm.

Right now, Tavares needs to get some better talent surrounding him, but he definitely has the talent.

 

[matchpenalty]

I don't think he even gets into Kane, Toews level.
Tavares to me will be more of a borderline All Star. I watched a few NYI games and he never stood out much. He got plenty ice time and PP time as well. Doesn't help he plays on crappy team.

 

[gonzagacubs]

It is my opinion that what separates Ovie and Crosby from everyone else is the other players the respected organizations puts around them. Ovechkin for example played on a line with a guy who scored 40 goals this season (Semin), and another who had 33 G and 68 Assists (Backstrom). Needless to say, easily the dominant line in the NHL from a scoring perspective.

Anyway, Tavares has a chance to be really good. However, the Islanders are in a rebuilding stage, and need to do everything in their power to try and start adding talent around Tavares. Not only that, but also players who compliment the stronger aspects of Tavares' game.

 

[G $MONEY$]

btw, my favorite tavares card in my collection

[center:1jmod92a]

[/center:1jmod92a]
dave

great card Dave!!! :shock: