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Tavares Gave Up the ‘C,’ Now the Maple Leafs Are Falling Apart

John Tavares gave up the “C.” The team slid anyway. So what does leadership look like when you’re no longer in charge?

by
Old Prof
January 28, 2026

A year and a half ago, John Tavares did something that still doesn’t get talked about enough. He handed over the captaincy of the Maple Leafs. Not because he was pushed out. Not because the room had turned on him. He did it because the organization thought the team needed a different voice, and because Tavares believed the team came first.

That’s real leadership. Giving up the “C” isn’t just symbolic. It changes how you exist in the room. Suddenly, you’re not the voice when things go wrong. And a lot has gone wrong since. Last year, the team passed the regular season test in the standings, but the ending felt very familiar. This season? It’s been a mess. The playoffs are slipping away, and once again the loudest word in Toronto is “leadership.”

Put Yourself in Tavares’ Skates: What’s He Thinking?

So what’s Tavares thinking now?

John Tavares Maple Leafs NHL — John Tavares is no longer the Maple Leafs official leader, but he’s still leading.

If you put yourself in his skates — not as a fan boiling over, not as a columnist chasing a hot take — but as a veteran who chose to stay, who signed a team-friendly deal, who accepted a smaller role to keep the thing together, it probably feels pretty lonely. His job didn’t disappear when he gave up the “C.” It just changed. He became the guy who holds the line. Shows up every day. Doesn’t bail when it gets ugly. Keeps saying the right things because someone in the room has to.

We honestly don’t know what Auston Matthews says behind closed doors. We know what he does when he’s scoring, and we know how quiet he can be when games get heavy. Fans can argue forever about whether leadership is goals, emotion, or timing. Tavares doesn’t get to argue. His role now is to model what staying serious looks like when others seem a little too comfortable with losing.

Tavares Can’t Be Oblivious About His Team’s Failings

That doesn’t mean he’s oblivious. He can see the drift. He can feel when games don’t hurt enough for some guys. But leadership isn’t always about blowing things up or calling people out in public. Sometimes it’s just refusing to lower the bar, even when the room around you starts to feel loose.

Tavares isn’t yelling. He isn’t sulking. He isn’t trying to take anything back. He’s doing the unglamorous part. He’s working hard to hold things together and hoping enough teammates decide it still matters.

At this point, he might have the hardest job on the team.