it’s a done deal: Toronto Maple Leafs have just withdraw John Tavares as the captain of the Maple Leafs due to…..
The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to make a minor adjustment to their on-ice leadership team, with John Tavares stepping down as captain and passing the role to star forward Auston Matthews.
Tavares is entering the final year of his contract, and his future with the team is uncertain, which might have influenced the Maple Leafs’ decision. According to NHL insider Chris Johnston on TSN, this topic has been under discussion within the organization for several months.
“This conversation took a serious turn after the team’s season ended in May,” Johnston explained. “From what I understand, during John Tavares’ exit meeting, the possibility of this change was raised.”
The Maple Leafs had always intended for Matthews to take on the captaincy at some point in his career, but they ensured Tavares was comfortable with the transition.
“Discussions continued until Tavares felt at ease with passing the captaincy to Auston Matthews,” Johnston added. “The Leafs’ organization had anticipated that this would eventually be the direction they would take.”
Before Tavares was appointed captain just before the 2019-20 season, the Maple Leafs had been without a captain for over three years. Matthews was a strong candidate for the role, but his involvement in a disorderly conduct incident in his hometown of Scottsdale, Arizona, came to light just over a week before the captaincy was awarded to Tavares.
Matthews acknowledged his responsibility for the incident at the time and focused on learning from it.
Now, with several years having passed since the incident, the Maple Leafs believe Matthews has grown both as a player and as a person, making him the right choice for the captaincy.
