The NLL does not pay multi-million dollar salaries. Players make between nothing but paid expenses to a rare maximum of $30,000.
Almost every player in the league holds a full time or a few part time jobs on the side. Some are teachers, others are contractors/landscapers and bartenders, to name a few.
Games and practices mostly take place on weekends, and some players fly/long distance travel to participate.
Most athletes play in multiple lacrosse leagues, the majority of which are in Canada, and occasionally do two leagues at once (especially if the differing seasons match up accordingly).
Now, let’s relate all of this to a long-time lacrosse standout named John Tavares. I speak of the John Tavares born in Toronto, Ontario back in September 4, 1968 (that makes him 45 hears old today), and not the John Tavares of the New York Islanders. Coincidentally NY Islanders J. Tavares is the nephew of Buffalo Bandits J. Tavares. The Islanders player always states that his biggest athlete role model was his Uncle John.
John Tavares of the Bandits has been called the “Wayne Gretzky of lacrosse.” I think of him as the Brett Favre of Lacrosse. Commencing his NLL career in 1992, Tavares holds the records for career points, goals and assists. He has won four NLL championships and been on 12 championship teams combining all the leagues he’s participated in. Standing at 5-11 and weighing 185 pounds, the forward currently has a career total of 779 goals, 887 assists, and 1,666 points.
I point out the 1,666 due to mere superstition. John Tavares not only holds these records and still plays, but his statistics indicate he has no intentions of slowing down. He remains consistent in his seasonal performances year to year. At 1,666, will the superstition of “the devil’s number” impact his performance this upcoming season. I personally doubt it. Mainly because I’m not superstitious, but also because when he reached 666 goals, Tavares remained consistent.
So why shouldn’t the Bandits bring Tavares back? That would be equivalent to the Packers not contracting Brett Favre under more ideal circumstances (better health, etc.). There is probably more underlying reasoning behind the move by Buffalo than reaches the surface.
Tavares was on the Bandits in 1993 with Troy Cordingley when they posted the best NLL record by a team in history, making them close friends. They understand each other on a level that is rarely achievable by many teams/coaches/players due to trades, length of careers, or other reasons. Tavares’ experiences in the league can have a massive impact on the new, younger players on the Bandits this year and he is the perfect role model.
This also increases the team’s marketability in a potentially growing league. Having a decorated veteran player like Tavares gives more reason for people to become interested and attend NLL events. Most can admit that, though Aaron Rodgers is a fantastic quarterback, the Packers have fewer viewers without Favre for the simple reason some people are followers of a player and not the team.
I mentioned earlier that many NLL athletes play in multiple leagues. John Tavares has also played on the Peterborough Lakers in the MSL, and has been a part of the following teams: Brampton Excelsiors, Six Nations Chiefs, and Victoria Shamrocks.
It’s all about perspective.
NFL Quarterback Brett Favre holds many records in the league. So do Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.
Imagine: Each quarterback playing in more than one football league, year round, and making less than $40,000/year combined.
Here’s the kicker!
Imagine: To supplement that income, each of them were also high school teachers.
That’s right. John Tavares, along with juggling a family and two or three lacrosse teams, also educates full time Mississauga, Ontario at Philip Pocock Catholic Secondary School (grades 9 through 12). He has instructed algebra, geometry, trigonometry and calculus.
“This is my bread and butter,” he said, sitting on his desk at the head of his classroom in Mississauga. “I love teaching. Long after I’m done playing lacrosse, I’ll be a teacher. This is my career.”
–Jeff Z. Klein, NY Times
“John really compartmentalizes his two lives,” said Henry Tyndorf, the school principal. “Most kids don’t know about his lacrosse life. When they do find out, they’re impressed. But it’s not because they’re star-struck — it’s because they’ve gotten to know him as a math teacher. He does not trumpet his athletic career.”
— Jeff Z. Klein, NY Times
Most full time working adults cannot wait to relax and catch up on personal lives over the weekends. Not John Tavares. If not practicing with the Bandits, the team is playing a game, either home or travel, and spend entire weekends away from home. They get home on Sundays (evenings) and immediately get up for work the next day (Monday).
Let’s wrap this all together. Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Tom Brady all holding full time jobs, playing in multiple leagues, bringing in far less than millions of dollars, playing for crowds approximately 10,000 to 15,000, and still holding all those records. Remember, NLL athletes also do not spend the majority of their time preparing for the field and lifting, working out, practicing, watching game film, etc. That is a feat that should be that much more significant popular.
So, again, why wouldn’t the Buffalo Bandits re-sign John Tavares for another season?
He was asked if he would come back for one more season, with Buffalo next January.”
“I’d love to say yes — I mean, I love playing lacrosse, as you know — but it depends on how I feel healthwise,” Tavares said, rattling off the series of knee and calf injuries he had this year. “I’ll have to reassess my body in the next couple of weeks, talk to my wife. I know my kids want me to play — whenever I talk to them, they say, ‘One more year, Dad, one more year!’ So it’s tough to let go. We’ll see what happens.”
–Jeff Z. Klein, NY Times
In 2013, Tavares went through a series of minor calf and knee injuries. He knows his body can’t maintain itself forever. As of November, it looks like spectators, the Bandits, and John’s passion got the win on this one. One more year, John!
