OPINION: WHY JOHN TAVARES SIGNING WITH TORONTO IS A GREAT IDEA FOR BOTH THE MAPLE LEAFS AND TAVARES

We here at NHLTradeRumors.ME are a diverse group. We love a good argument. Here is my rebuttal to me colleague's article entitled "Why John Tavares Signing With The Leafs is a BAD Idea For The Maple Leafs & Tavares"

First off, hats off to my colleague, Dave Andrews and a great article. I always enjoy reading his stuff and suggest you do the same. This article will take a different look at the Tavares situation.

This has been a hot topic around the NHL for what seems like an eternity. Should the Leafs Sign John Tavares (JT)?

Well, I would like to start, as my colleague did, by getting bias out of the way. I am a die hard, obsessed, bleeds blue and white, hockey dreamer, Stanley Cup hoisting (every year), bias Toronto Maple Leafs fan.

This bias however has given me reason to dig deep into this situation to pull out the positives.

1) It has been suggested that a 1 year 15 million dollar deal leading into an 8 year extension on Jan 1st 2019 would be too risky an idea for Tavares from a potential injury perspective. Well, the truth of the matter is, the contract can actually be insured for north of 60 million dollars, thus guaranteeing JT a hefty sum should he suffer some nasty career ending injury during said 4 month window.

Also, a plus from JT's perspective is, should playing for the Leafs not be everything he has dreamed of since he was just a young boy growing up just down the street, after his record setting year 1 pay day, he could potentially move on the greener pastures.

2) A lot has been made of the cap situation and that the leafs simply could not afford JT along with Marner, Matthews, and Nylander. This is ridiculous. I have seen an tonne of different drawn up scenarios where those four would likely eat up approx. 40 million dollars of the cap and there is still enough room to round out the team with quality young players.

3) The "They should spend my to upgrade the D" argument. Everyone knows that the number 1 concern for the Leafs brass is defence. What most people don't realize is that, these #1 d-man are simply not available via trade or free agency. If one should happen to come on the market, they are likly north of 28 years old and you would probably have to partially dismantle the team to acquire them.

I am all for the defensive upgrade, however, as we seen with the Travis Dermott experiment this year, help is on the way. Both Timothy Lilgjren & Justin Holl are coming off fantastic Championship winning seasons with the Toronto Marlies. Holl proved to be an excellent 2 way defender while Lilgjren has transitioned well the North American game in his rookie season. I feel Holl could easily make the jump this season to the Leafs, while Lilgjren could benefit from additional ice time and added responsibility for 1 more year with the Marlies.

4) The idea that Tavares decision is in any way going to be effected by the amount of tax he has to pay is also, in my opinion, generated mostly by Toronto haters. Yes the fact is that in other markets JT would pay less tax. I think we can all agree though that JT would likely offset any loss in taxes with Canadian based product endorsements. How long do you think it will take Tavares to become the new face of say Canadian Tire, Scotia Bank, etc?

It any case Tavares is about to double his salary from last year. He is and will become more filthy rich then most players in the league. What JT's prime concern right now should be and likely is, is winning. That is an area where I think the Leafs may have been able to make a great pitch. With their young core, they should be able to compete for the full of JT's contract. They have a fully stocked cupboard of good young prospects in the pipeline, evident in this years Calder Cup championship. Finally, the club is coming of their best season in team history guided by a coach and front office made up of some of the brightest minds in professional hockey.

In closing, I have no doubt these items were all brought to the table by Shanahan, Dubas and Babcock when they met with Tavares in LA and for the first time as a Leafs fan, I feel the team actually has a decent shot at landing the big fish UFA.

Leave you bias or otherwise unbiased opinions below. We would love to hear from you.

Go Leafs GO!