LAS VEGAS - John Tavares knows exactly what a young No. 1 pick can feel like when the spotlight starts to close in.
Back when he was an 18-year-old trying to survive the grind with the 2009-10 New York Islanders, Tavares had nights when the weight of expectations and the constant attention felt like too much. He was talented enough to belong, but still just a kid trying to navigate the league.
What helped was having somewhere to go after the rink besides an empty condo. Doug Weight’s home became that refuge.
Now Tavares and his wife, Aryne, are opening their own door for the same reason. Gavin McKenna, the top pick in this year’s NHL draft, will live with the Maple Leafs veteran and his family.
“You want him to go out and enjoy all the great things about being a Maple Leaf, and living his dream, playing in the NHL, and the opportunity to play for an unbelievable fanbase that’s going to love him and support him,” Tavares said at the NHL/NHLPA player media tour on Tuesday night. “And when it does feel heavy at times, or when it is a lot, going through it for the first time, he has that ability to just be in a family environment.”
Tavares said he and Aryne talked it through before letting Toronto general manager John Chayka know they were ready to take McKenna in. The setup isn’t unusual around the league. Connor Bedard lived with Nick Foligno in Chicago, Macklin Celebrini stayed with retired Sharks star Joe Thornton in San Jose, and Matthew Schaefer lives with former player and current executive Matt Martin on Long Island.
Tavares was quick to point out that his own experience as a first overall pick came in a different era. He entered the league before social media turned every move into a public event, and he did it in the relative quiet of the Long Island market. McKenna’s situation is a different kind of challenge entirely.
“McKenna is the No. 1 pick in Toronto. In 2026. That’s going to be… a lot.”
Tavares said the arrangement should give McKenna a chance to “decompress and disconnect,” especially since the teenager is coming from Whitehorse in the Yukon.
“It’s definitely different than what I had experienced,” Tavares said. “That’s why even more I felt like offering up the opportunity if it made sense for him and the organization.
Just being able to come home and disconnect from it all - the attention can be a lot at times, especially just being 18 years old and from a small town in a more remote place out in the Yukon (Whitehorse). That can be really positive for him.”
The move is not only about McKenna settling in. Tavares, who is 11 days from his 36th birthday, thinks he’ll get something out of it too. He said he’s been energized in recent seasons by younger teammates like Matthew Knies and Easton Cowan, and he’s been “impressed” with McKenna’s skill and maturity this summer.
He said it’s been enjoyable to “see through his eyes a little bit,” and to feel some of the rookie excitement again.
“I think I’m going to get a tremendous benefit, as well,” Tavares said. “I’m excited about it.”
The off-ice arrangement comes as the Maple Leafs enter a very different chapter. Nearly five months after a miserable season ended in miserable fashion, the organization has been reshaped by a chaotic offseason. Toronto now has a new GM in Chayka, a new exec in Mats Sundin, a new head coach in Jim Hiller, a new goalie in Sergei Bobrovsky, a new top-pairing defenseman in Darryn Raddysh, and new depth pieces in Nick Paul, Jack Roslovic, Colton Sissons, Brandon Duhaime and Teddy Blueger.
Tavares said the changes have created a better feeling around the team, even while acknowledging how hard the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference remain.
“It’s been amazing,” he said. “It’s pretty impressive what’s gone on.
Gotta give the organization a lot of credit. … (They’ve) created an amazing environment and an amazing experience and opportunity to do something special that hasn’t been done in Toronto in a long time.”
And with McKenna in the fold, Toronto’s biggest addition may be the one that needs the most care. For Tavares, that means a veteran role that goes beyond the ice.
A teammate. And now, a landlord, too.
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