Fans' hostility toward Tavares knows no bounds in return to Long Island
From boos and 'liar' chants to various projectiles, Islanders fans hold nothing back
John Tavares had to know there would be boos.
But snakes?
John Tavares gets plastic snakes thrown at him in his return to New York <a href="https://t.co/HKKHVskZ79">pic.twitter.com/HKKHVskZ79</a>
—@BradyTrettFans in Long Island took every measure before and during the Toronto Maple Leafs game against the New York Islanders on Thursday to remind "traitor" John Tavares that they weren't happy with the way he left things.
’TRAITOR’ all over the arena will definitely make Tavares feel worse about his decision, I’m sure. <a href="https://t.co/dQPoxte9jK">pic.twitter.com/dQPoxte9jK</a>
—@SNFaizalKhamisaThe departure, of course, came last July when Tavares traded in his blue and orange for blue and white and signed a seven-year contract with the Leafs. Tavares had spent his entire career with the Islanders after being drafted No. 1 overall in 2009.
Making it official. <a href="https://t.co/CAAxbYR4jY">pic.twitter.com/CAAxbYR4jY</a>
—@MapleLeafsNot everyday you can live a childhood dream <a href="https://t.co/YUTKdfMALl">pic.twitter.com/YUTKdfMALl</a>
—@91TavaresFans came at Tavares from every angle before the game, including a local TV station putting together a particularly scathing video. You can catch the full version here.
The TV version of our <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Isles?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Isles</a> fans <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DearJohn?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DearJohn</a> letter will debut at 11:45am on <a href="https://twitter.com/News12LI?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@News12LI</a>. There will also be a 3 minute extended version on <a href="https://t.co/tkPpEdoT6Y">https://t.co/tkPpEdoT6Y</a> later today. <a href="https://t.co/6CuBcHZC3K">pic.twitter.com/6CuBcHZC3K</a>
—@KMaherNews12Tavares jersey owners got especially creative with different ways to cover "he-who-must-not-be-named" on the back of their sweaters.
Tavares jersey remake: Winner! <a href="https://t.co/PXhqhgJNec">pic.twitter.com/PXhqhgJNec</a>
—@KMaherNews12Couple goals <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Isles?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Isles</a> <a href="https://t.co/W4ZMHfhKI3">pic.twitter.com/W4ZMHfhKI3</a>
—@IslesBlogWhile one fan decided to ditch their jersey all together.
Even so, the Islanders played a nice tribute video to Tavares during the first period—though it would be largely drowned out by boos — and worse — from the crowd.
Islanders fans are completely drowning out the Tavares tribute video with boos and chants of "asshole"
—@wyshynskiWhether the fans' intensity played a roll or not, they certainly got what the wanted out of the game as the Islanders took the win a 6-1 blowout.