John Tavares earned 1,000 NHL points with a goal and an assist in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 4-3 overtime loss to the New York Islanders on Monday at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York. reached.
The 33-year-old center reached the milestone with an assist on Morgan Rielly’s game-tying goal with seven seconds left in the third period to make it 3-3.
“It was a little surreal,” Tavares said. “It wasn’t pretty, so I just wanted to make sure it was correct.” [that I had an assist]. I had a good feeling because I was showing my presence in front of the net, but it missed the ball perfectly, which led to a big point.
“I’m really happy that it happened at a really good time for the team. It’s been a great journey, a great journey so far. Obviously we want to celebrate the win, but I’m proud of it. In a way, it’s been a great journey. I can move on feeling good about what happened and have time and space to soak it up a little bit more.”
Tavares scored at 7:43 of the second period when he backhanded a pass from Connor Timmins to his feet, cutting New York’s lead to 3-2.
Bo Horvat scored the game-winner for the Islanders 46 seconds into overtime.
“This is a great accomplishment for him,” said New York center Casey Cizikas, Tavares’ teammate from 2012 to 2018. “That’s something he should be very proud of. It’s not easy, but he’s had an incredible career, so it’s only natural that he should have a special moment like that.”
Tavares, the Islanders’ No. 1 pick in the 2009 NHL Draft, played in 1,054 games with Toronto and New York, scoring 435 goals and dishing out 565 assists.
“It’s just unbelievable,” Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews said. “What he means to this team, this organization, obviously the history he’s had here (with the Islanders), the trip with his father in the crowd, it’s hard to write a better script than that. Of course it would have been nice to get the extra point, but we’re all very happy for him. It’s just a big milestone, a big moment for him and something that should be celebrated.”
Tavares signed a seven-year, $77 million contract (averaging $11 million annually) with Toronto on July 1, 2018, after spending nine seasons with the Islanders.
“Obviously, for me, the uniqueness of doing it where I played the first nine years of my career is a big part of who I am,” Tavares said. “The impact this place had on me was immeasurable. It’s really unique and cool to do it here. This place has a lot of meaning.
“It would have been nice to get the two points and be a little bit happier in the dressing room, but it was really good to get it and have the support of my teammates. It was great to do it here.”
NHL.com independent correspondent Stefen Rosner contributed to this report
