There has been a trend in the NHL toward younger players being captains, and the results have been mixed. But John Tavares of the New York Islanders has quickly established himself as the leader of the club in his first year wearing the “C” despite the fact that he is just 23.
Tavares describes his leadership style by saying, “I just like to be a guy that’s hard working and humble. You earn what you get...You hope that stuff can rub off on guys.”
The Islanders have accepted Tavares as their leader despite getting off to a disappointing 8-10-3 start this season after they qualified for the playoffs last year for the first time since 2007. Injuries to key players like veteran defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky, forward Thomas Vanek and now goalie Evgeni Nabokov haven’t helped.
But Tavares works harder at being a great hockey player than anybody, and that has earned him the respect of Islanders rookies and veterans alike. The one thing that all Isles players agreed on when asked about their captain was that he leads primarily by example. Monday at practice, he was once again one of the last playe ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Brad Kurtzberg
How John Tavares Has Won over New York Islander Teammates in 1st Year as Captain
November 18th, 2013 by Brad Kurtzberg Leave a reply »
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