Tavares Inked: Leafs Lock Up Captain with Massive $8 Million AAV Extension
John Tavares is widely expected to remain with the Toronto Maple Leafs beyond this season with his current seven-year, $77 million contract expiring on July 1.
Tavares’ next contract, however, may not be as cheap and come at such a discount as some had anticipated.
According to Kevin McGran of The Toronto Star, the rising salary cap could result in Tavares’ next deal landing at a figure around an average annual value (AAV) of $8 million if only because of the salary-cap context it’d be signed within.
“It’s widely assumed the former captain will re-sign for less than the $11-million average he got as a free agent in the summer of 2018,” McGran wrote. “But with that extra money in the system, it may not drop that far—an $8-million average is not that bad a bet.”
With Auston Matthews taking the “captain” designation from him at the start of the season but missing time earlier in the year, Tavares ramped up his production and stepped into a bigger role without much trouble.
Tavares, 34, has been a key piece for Toronto this season, scoring 21 goals and notching 24 assists in 47 games.
At the end of January, the NHL and the Players’ Association released the salary cap projections (it’s currently at $88 million) for the next three seasons, expecting them to reach $95.5 million in 2025-26, $104 million in ’26-27 and $113.5 million in ’27-28.
McGran noted that with the NHL’s salary cap expected to rise to $113.5 million by 2027–28, an $8 million annual cap hit would become a smaller percentage of the Leafs’ payroll as the deal progresses, making it a real possibility for Tavares to sign for that yearly figure.
Originally selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the New York Islanders in the 2009 NHL Draft, Tavares spent nine seasons with the franchise before signing with Toronto in 2018.
During his time with the Leafs, Tavares has scored 464 points in 487 regular-season games, to go with 24 points in 38 postseason matchups.
