Three periods of relentless booing from a rabid New York Islanders crowd hardly surprised John Tavares, who played his first game in his old barn as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.
"I expected it was coming," Tavares told TSN after the game. "No one's walked in my shoes, I know that. I just tried to be open and honest. Obviously, no one has to like my decision."
Tavares joined Toronto as a free agent on July 1 after nine seasons in New York, signing a seven-year, $77-million contract and spurning the club that drafted him first overall.
Islanders fans were more than prepared to let him hear it, serenading the former captain with "We don't need you!" chants, among several others, throughout the entire game. They also launched toy snakes on the ice during warmup and set plenty of old No. 91 jerseys ablaze while tailgating to set the tone for a playoff-like atmosphere.
Even the team's video tribute was drowned out by boos, despite Tavares leaving the organization with 621 points to his name - the fifth-highest total in franchise history.
"You must be a real special player, and a real special person, for them to honor you like that," head coach Mike Babcock said postgame. "They only boo you if you're important - for most of us, they didn't even know who we were - so what an honor that is.
"I thought our team handled that really good. I thought we played good, we started good - to me, the crowd had nothing to do with the outcome of the game."
Though Isles fans were consistently hostile, Tavares' former teammates openly tipped their caps during the video and shared their own perspectives following the game - a dominant 6-1 victory for the home side.
"Maybe during the tribute, they could have maybe given (him) a round of applause," Cal Clutterbuck told Newsday's Andrew Gross. "He put everything he had into winning here. But I understand both sides."
Tavares was held pointless with five shots on goal in his much-anticipated return. He's notched 68 points in 64 games this season.
