Well Leafs Nation, one of our guys finally took a hometown discount to stay with Toronto.

On Friday, the Maple Leafs resigned centreman John Tavares to a 4-year deal, worth $4.38M annually.

Reports circulated for weeks about Tavares commanding $7M on his next contract. Leafs fans were hesitant to bring back the hometown kid due to his age and asking price. There’s nothing to worry about anymore, as John Tavares took a hometown discount to stay with the Leafs, and give the club a higher budget to work with.

In 2024-25, John Tavares skated in 75 regular season games, scoring 38G, 36A for 74 total points. In the postseason, Tavares skated in 13 games, scored 5G and 2A for 7 total points.

With Tavares’ age only rising and his production only dropping, this deal gives the Leafs a lot of flexibility to sign players to fill other holes in the lineup. With Tavares still being a good second line centre, being able to still play in those dirty areas and win puck battles, he’ll be a serviceable 2C for Toronto until they’re able to find a younger, more suitable player for that role, which Tavares would easily slide down to the 3C role and thrive against lesser competition.

John Tavares, a Maple Leaf since July 1, 2018, ranks 13th in goals (222), 19th in assists (271), and 16th in points (493) in franchise history

With Tavares taking over $6M of a discount from his previous contract, and still being able to provide elite leadership and 200-ft skills, the Leafs found themselves with a bargain bringing the former captain back to their team. Toronto still has a lot to do with the apparent loss of Mitch Marner, but bringing Tavares back gives the team and the fans a bit of a morale boost.