TORONTO -- John Tavares didn’t even crack a smile when he scored career goal No. 500.

One week later, the Toronto Maple Leafs forward was cracking jokes with the media after scoring No. 501.

What a difference seven days make.

Indeed, when the 35-year-old became the 49th player in NHL history to reach the 500-goal plateau against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 29, there was very little reason to celebrate. Nor was he about to. Even with his milestone moment, the Maple Leafs were still trailing the Blue Jackets 6-2 in a game Toronto would end up losing 6-3.

Wednesday was a totally different story.

It started with a pregame ceremony in which his parents, Barbara and Joe; wife, Aryne; 6-year-old son, Jace; 4-year-old son, Axton; and 2-year-old daughter, Rae, were on the ice to see h

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