As the old comedian Rodney Dangerfield used to say:
"I get no respect. No respect at all!"
Niether, it seems, does John Tavares of the Oshawa Generals. He and his teamates invade the cozy confines of the Gatorade Garden City complex on Thursday evening. And his coming appearance got me to thinking. Who gets less respect than JT.
All he has accomplished during his first three years in the OHL was to enter the league as an underage 15 year old who chalked up 77 points as a rookie. He branched out at 16 and scored 72 goals enroute to 134 points. In return, he was rejected in his bid to make the Canadian National Junior Team. He made Team Canada last year and saw only spot duty. Despite this he scored on 19% of his shots on goal as he got 4 goals (3 on the power play) and 5 points. His time away with Team Canada saw him play 12 fewer league games and yet despite this, he still scored 118 points. Yet some fans labeled his season, "disappointing" because he only recorded 40 goals.
Wow! We should all be such a disappointment! There are some fans out there who already feel he is no longer the "Next One". Can any one of us imagine what it must be like to be written off by some before you are even 20 years of age. Some are even populating blogs and fan forums with the notion that the Generals should trade JT while they still can. They have even anointed the London Knights as his next destination.
Who knows? These fair weather fans might be right. The Gens may deal Tavares before the January trade deadline. But not because he has disappointed the team in Oshawa. But rather, because he might be enough to lead a team (such as London?) to playoff success, while at the same time repopulating Oshawa with a prospect or two for the future.
And before anyone else writes this young man off, he has much to prove this season, even if he finishes the year in Oshawa. He should figure prominently in Team Canada's line up this Christmas. And, thanks to the NHL rejecting the notion that he should have been granted special status to be selected in the 2008 Draft, he has to wait until this summer to see if he is still regarded as the best prospect in his graduating class. Or, might he get no respect again by slipping to number 2?
All I know, is that just one game into this new season, is that this young man has 2 goals and 2 assists. How disappointing is that?
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