John Tavares to Sign With Maple Leafs For Seven Years, $77 Million
John Tavares doesn’t sign with the Bruins, but their division rival in Toronto.
NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 26: John Tavares #91 of the New York Islanders reacts in the third period against the Florida Panthers during their game at Barclays Center on March 26, 2018 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
Abbie Parr/Getty ImagesJohn Tavares won't be signing with the Boston Bruins. Instead, he's agreed to a seven-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The new deal for the free-agent center will pay him $11 million per season. He'd previously met with the Bruins, San Jose Sharks, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Dallas Stars, in addition to the Leafs.
Tavares posted a farewell message to his former team, the New York Islanders, via Twitter on Sunday. He later announced he's signing with the Maple Leafs.
Tavares finishes his Islanders career with 621 points in 669 games. He joins a Maple Leafs team that already had Auston Matthews and Nazem Kadri at center, in addition to young stars Mitchell Marner and William Nylander at the wing positions.
The Bruins have made some minor moves to fill out the bottom of the roster to start free agency. They signed goalie Jaroslav Halak to a two-year deal, and also signed forwards Chris Wagner and Joakim Nordstrom.
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