John Tavares signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, ending the saga of one of the most highly sought after free agents in NHL history. The 27-year-old will make US$77 million over the next seven seasons, for an average annual salary cap hit of $11 million.
Here are five things you need to know about Tavares:
— The Mississauga, Ont., product was granted "exceptional player" status to join the Ontario Hockey League at age 15 in 2005. Tavares was selected first overall in the OHL draft by the Oshawa Generals, and would go on to score an OHL-record 215 goals with 218 assists in 247 regular-season games. He added 56 points (20 goals, 36 assists) in 38 playoff outings.
— Tavares helped Canada win back-to-back titles at the world junior hockey championships. He had four goals and an assist in seven tournament games in 2008 before putting up an incredible eight goals and seven assists in six games in 2009 in Ottawa, including a memorable hat trick against the United States on New Year's Eve.
— The first overall pick in the 2009 NHL draft by the New York Islanders, Tavares has 272 goals and 349 assists for 621 points in 669 regular-season games. The team qualified for the playoffs in just three of his nine years in the Big Apple, but Tavares made the most of those springs with 11 goals and 11 assists in 24 outings.
— He signed a six-year, $33-million contract with the Islanders in September 2011 after completing his entry-level deal.
— Tavares was part of Canada's dominant gold-medal winning team at the 2014 Olympics, but suffered a knee injury in the quarterfinals that forced him to miss the rest of the tournament and the balance of the NHL season. He had one goal and three assists in 2016 as Canada won the World Cup of Hockey in Toronto.
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Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press