Leafs' Tavares honoured by his junior hockey team
Long before he was playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs, John Tavares was wowing audiences just a little down the road in his junior hockey days.
And this past weekend, the Leafs captain and his family took a trip back to his old arena in Oshawa — the Tribute Communities Centre — where he was welcomed in a pregame ceremonial faceoff.
Tavares, his wife Aryne, and their three children were on hand representing John’s self-titled charitable foundation.
“Thank you to [the Generals] and all the fans for graciously hosting my family and me at the game this past Sunday, March 10,” the John Tavares Foundation shared in a post on Instagram.
“We are immensely grateful for the overwhelming support you have shown for our foundation, and we are thrilled to announce that we raised $13,000! This funding will be directed towards supporting initiatives aimed at helping the next generation thrive through education, nutrition, and sport.”
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In four seasons with the Generals, Tavares put up 183 goals and an even 200 assists in just 223 games to finish second place in franchise history with 383 points with the team.
And though he’d get traded in the final season of his junior career to the London Knights, it was with Oshawa where Tavares spent the bulk of his teenage hockey days before getting drafted first overall by the New York Islanders in 2009.
The Generals ended up putting on a show for Tavares, defeating the visiting Barrie Colts by a 5-1 score. But the Generals weren’t the only victors on the day.
“We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the winners of our chuck-a-puck contest! We deeply appreciate everyone who participated in the contest and contributed to our fundraising efforts,” the post added. “A special shoutout goes to all our volunteers who dedicated their time and energy to support us throughout the day. Your assistance was invaluable, and we couldn’t have done it without you!”
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