New York Sports: Ranking the Top 25 Athletes of 2014

Dec 27, 2014; Buffalo, NY, USA; New York Islanders center John Tavares (91) celebrates with the bench his second goal of the game during the second period against the Buffalo Sabres at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

12.) John Tavares

2014 has been an up and down year for the Islanders’ star John Tavares. In the 2014 Winter Olympics, Tavares would suffer a season-ending knee injury that cost him the rest of the regular season with the Islanders.

This season Tavares has seemed to recover from his knee surgery rather well, but hasn’t been producing quite at the elite level that fans expect from Tavares. This season Tavares is tied for first on the Islanders with 32 points in 37 games, but Tavares does lead the Islanders with 15 goals, and will be a crucial part of the Islanders’ hopeful playoff run in 2015.

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