The former Leafs captain gets honest.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are back in action Saturday night against a familiar rival, aiming to exact some revenge. They'll face the Boston Bruins, who eliminated them in a hard-fought seven-game series in the first round of the 2024 postseason.
Facing the Bruins is always a challenge for the Leafs, as they've been knocked out of the postseason by Boston four times now since 2013, with each series coming down to a deciding seventh game at TD Garden.
For former Leafs captain John Tavares, who has been with the Leafs for two of those heartbreaking postseason setbacks against their historic rival, Saturday night's game is an easy one to get up for, via TSN.
“Obviously, (they're) a rival, a divisional opponent,” he said. “Always a great atmosphere here. It will be a good challenge, obviously a very good hockey team. Obviously, we want to get our game going and get back on the right side of how we want to play and earn a good result.
That's where our focus is, last year is in the past and it is what it is. We've taken the offseason to regroup, we've got a new group here and a new season, and we're just excited for the opportunity tonight.”
The Leafs and Bruins will face off from TD Garden starting at 7:00 PM EST.
Maple Leafs forward John Tavares is in the final year of his contract
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There has been rampant speculation regarding the future of Tavares, who ceded the captaincy to teammate Auston Matthews in August, with the Maple Leafs.
He's entered the final year of his contract that was given to him by former Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas in the summer of 2018, one that lured him away from the New York Islanders despite being the face of their franchise.
In seven games played in 2024-25, Tavares has two goals with three assists; he's scored 458 goals with 587 assists during his career with the Islanders and Maple Leafs.
