| Not since Sidney Crosby suited up for his first NHL | | | | the World Junior Tournament the issue was no longer |
| game in back in 2005 has the hype around an NHL | | | | in doubt. Tavares was the consensus #1 and the |
| rookie been this high. John Tavares was the #1 overall | | | | scouts' ranking was verified by his #1 selection at the |
| pick of the New York Islanders in last spring's NHL | | | | 2009 draft. |
| entry draft, and expectations are high that he might be | | | | So will John Tavares do what Sidney Crosby and |
| the NHL's next bona fide superstar. | | | | Alexander Ovechkin did before him? Will he light the |
| If you follow hockey regularly then you've likely been | | | | league on fire and become the NHL's next superstar? |
| hearing the name John Tavares for a few years now. | | | | Obviously this is a huge level of expectation for a guy |
| In fact, Tavares made headlines in the same year | | | | who has will just have celebrated his 19th season |
| Crosby was a rookie, joining the OHL as a 15 year old | | | | when he plays his first game for the New York |
| under a special "exceptional player" rule that was | | | | Islanders. However, in most cases (though not all) the |
| created just for them. He didn't waste any living up to | | | | best players in the game have delivered the goods in |
| his "exceptional" status, potting 45 goals and 77 points | | | | their first NHL season. From Wayne Gretzky and |
| in just 65 games in his OHL rookie season. The | | | | Mario Lemieux to Crosby and Ovechkin these elite |
| following season he exploded, scoring 72 goals and | | | | athletes have had an immediate impact, all scoring 100 |
| 134 points in 67 games. The 72 goals were an OHL | | | | points or more in their rookie campaigns. Those are |
| record for goals scored by a 16 year old, breaking a | | | | some big shoes to fill, but if the 45 goals Tavares put |
| long held record by a fellow by the name of Wayne | | | | up in the OHL is anything to go by he should acquit |
| Gretzky. That turned out to be his best season in | | | | himself well in his rookie season. |
| junior, but when he played his final game in the OHL | | | | Tavares doesn't have a lot of help on the Islanders |
| last season, Tavares had 215 career goals, the most | | | | roster, and he is going to have a target on his chest all |
| ever in the history of the league. | | | | year long, but so did those players mentioned above, |
| The hype meter surrounding John Tavares reached all | | | | and they managed to find a way to dominate the |
| new highs at the 2009 World Junior Championships. | | | | game. No matter what you can bet that media and |
| Tavares scored 8 goals and had 15 points in just 6 | | | | fans around the league will be putting this kid under the |
| games on the way to being named the tournament | | | | microscope all season long. So far Tavares has |
| MVP. Up until the tournament NHL scouts were torn | | | | proved he can thrive under pressure, and there is no |
| between naming Tavares or hulking Swedish | | | | reason to expect he won't do the same in the NHL. |
| defenseman Victor Hedman their #1 prospect. After | | | | |