The preliminaries are through at Toronto’s training camp, exhibition games are next, so time for some takeaways.

Any National Hockey League team would love to squeeze Stanley Cup silver from a player in his golden sunset years.

In Toronto, that’s been a pipe dream. The top five scorers in franchise history were traded or ended their careers elsewhere, partial explanation of 58 years without a title.

John Tavares might buck that trend, turning 35 on Saturday before another 35-goal season is attainable. Last year’s 38, with durable attendance of 75 games, was 12th in league history for his age. Looking forward, Mike Gartner is the only Leaf to score 35 at 35 (thank you NHL Stats) and were J.T. to reach 40, he’d be just the eighth on a legendary list with the likes of Gordie Howe, Phil Esp

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