The sky’s no longer falling in Toronto.

And quite frankly, John Tavares’ 12^th career hat-trick – fourth as a Maple Leaf – is a big reason why.

As he does from time to time, the former captain, who’s in a contract year, turned back the clock in Monday night’s 6-4 victory in Winnipeg.

Simply put, the Jets had no answer for the newly minted trio of Max Pacioretty, Tavares, and William Nylander. In total, they combined for four goals and five helpers to help their team snaped a three-game winless skid. They were tough to handle all night long.

Ultimately, this is what John Tavares has done his entire NHL career. Every time people begin to count him out and wonder how much left he has in the tank, he goes out and has a monster performance. I don’t care who wants to be debate me on this, but I truly feel like he’s built for Toronto. He doesn’t get too high, and he doesn’t get too low, either. Nothing seems to phase him. And in this market, that’s massive. Not everyone can hack it in Toronto.

Is Tavares slowing down? Unquestionably. That said, I think Monday night’s display was a stern reminder that he can still be a very productive piece for this Maple Leafs team.

From a production standpoint, it always seems like Tavares is hovering around a point per game pace. This year’s no different. In nine outings, despite being nowhere close to 100% for a good chunk of those games, Tavares has still managed to muster five goals and four assists. If you recall, Tavares was forced to miss the third game of the season due to illness, one that reportedly led him to lose eight pounds. By all accounts, it was a lengthy battle and an even lengthier recovery.

Any way you slice it, if the Leafs are going to do anything substantial come the Stanley Cup Playoffs, they will need Tavares to be at his very best. There will be ups, there will downs, but rest assured, there’s no question that this guy, who’s now in his 16^th season, will give it his all until the bitter end.

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