Matthews reveals "very emotional" phone call with Leafs' Tavares to pass over captaincy
The Toronto Maple Leafs are making a big bet on the face of the franchise.
Auston Matthews was officially named the Leafs captain on Wednesday, two days after the initial news broke.
And while Matthews is often praised for being stone-faced on the ice, he admitted that his emotions got the better of him when the now-former captain John Tavares called him earlier this month to give him the news.
“I told him I was like, shaking. I had chills,” Matthews told the media today. “Like I said, it’s such a big honour just to represent the Maple Leafs and put on that jersey every night. To be a captain is truly special. So, you know, for him to call me and kind of let me know that to pass on the captaincy, it was very emotional. I felt a lot of things, but it’s truly an honour.”
Tavares has been the Leafs captain since 2019, his second season with the team, and has worn the “C” for five seasons. While Tavares, Matthews, and other players have had considerable individual success over that timeframe, the team has made it out of the first round of the playoffs just once in the past twenty years.
Following Toronto’s first-round loss to the Boston Bruins in seven games this year, Leafs GM Brad Treliving said he first had the idea to pass the captaincy to Matthews from Tavares.
“It was at that time John and I had a conversation and I first raised the thought I had about the succession of the captaincy to John,” Treliving said. “And I can tell you right from the start that John was on board. I can tell you he loves being the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs.”
Tavares, who has one year remaining on his seven-year contract with the Leafs, also offered up some advice to Matthews on how to handle the pressure of wearing the C in a market like Toronto.
“It’s an honour and a responsibility for a reason. It’s a tremendous one, but at the same time, it’s not all on his shoulders,” he said. “You don’t have all the answers. Leaning on other people is critical.”
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