Reports emerged on Monday evening that the Toronto Maple Leafs were giving the captaincy to Auston Matthews. Matthews has long been seen as a leader in the locker room. And now, with the full support of former captain John Tavares, they felt this was the right time to give him the “C.” On Wednesday, the Maple Leafs named Matthews captain.

Matthews is the 26th captain in the history of the franchise. He is the third Toronto player to wear the “C” since 2010. Former defenseman Dion Phaneuf skated as captain from 2010-11 to 2015-16. And Tavares wore the letter on his jersey from 2019-20 to 2023-24.

Tavares appeared at a press conference on Wednesday where the Maple Leafs announced the move. At this press conference, the former Toronto captain revealed his message to his successor for the captaincy. “I’m transferring the captaincy to you. It’s your time,” Tavares said, via NHL.com.

John Tavares had some success as Maple Leafs captain

Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares (91) against the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center.
Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

John Tavares came to the Maple Leafs looking to win the Stanley Cup. He took on the captaincy for the second time in his career. The Toronto star skated as captain of the New York Islanders from 2013-14 to 2017-18.

He helped his hometown team overcome a massive playoff hurdle as captain. Tavares and the Maple Leafs defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. It marked their first playoff series victory since the 2004 postseason.

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However, that victory represented the only such playoff victory for Tavares as Maple Leafs captain. Toronto went on to lose to the Florida Panthers in the second round that year. Additionally, they were eliminated in the first round in every other postseason appearance.

The leadership in the locker room now shifts to Matthews. The Maple Leafs see his appointment as captain as a natural step in his career progression. And Tavares believes the time is right for Matthews to make his mark on the locker room.

“I just wanted to let him know what I thought about him and that I thought the time was now for him to take charge and be the captain and be the leader of our club and how ready he was for it,” Tavares said, via NHL.com. “He's got my full support to continue what when I came here six years ago to do and wanting to bring the Stanley Cup back here to Toronto and finding a way to do that.”