TORONTO -- John Tavares has no regrets about the life-changing decision he made almost seven years ago to leave the New York Islanders and join the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Anything but.
"Aside from not being able to help bring a Stanley Cup here, it's been everything I could hope for," the Maple Leafs forward told NHL.com this week. "In fact, it's been even better than I thought, to be honest."
Which is a big reason why, if things line up, the Maple Leafs forward, who's in the final season of the seven-year, $77 million contract ($11 million average annual value) he signed on July 1, 2018, continues to reiterate that his goal is to re-sign with Toronto, all things being equal.
"I've said it before, I would love to stay and hope it works out," he said. "I think that's, that's my goal and my intention."
For Tavares, a native of the Toronto area, the focus is on the present and the future, not looking in the rear-view mirror. It's a narrative that always seems to be brought up to him whenever the Maple Leafs meet the Islanders like they will at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; CBC, SN1, SNO, SNP, MSGSN2).
He definitely has no shortage of things to look forward to, even at age 34.
Entering the game against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Centre on Friday, Tavares ranked third on the Maple Leafs in scoring with 29 points (15 goals, 14 assists) in 31 games, including his 14th career hat trick in a 5-3 win against the Sabres at Scotiabank Area on Sunday. He's also second among Toronto forwards in plus-minus (+6), trailing only Bobby McMann.
"I'm just really confident in my game right now at both ends," he said. "I just keep working at it."
Thus far, coach Craig Berube is pleased with what he's seen.
"His preparation is unequalled," Berube said. "It starts in the summer and never falters. He's constantly working on his game, both in the offensive and defensive zones."