Leafs captain Tavares will play in season opener

Toronto Maple Leafs captain John Tavares told reporters he will be ready to play in the season opener against the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday.

John Tavares leads the stretch Leafs captain was a full participant in practice once again pic.twitter.com/hZm7lZvdJK

Per TSN Hockey Insider Mark Masters, Tavares said he is "feeling good," and that "tomorrow looks good. So, excited about that ... excited that I can be there right off the get go."

Tavares suffered an oblique strain on Sept. 27 and was originally given a three-week timetable for recovery.

Tavares was originally drafted first overall by the New York Islanders in 2009, and played there for nine seasons before joining the Maple Leafs ahead of the 2018-19 season.

The Mississauga, Ont., native scored 27 goals and registered 76 points in 79 games last season for the Leafs.

In 949 career NHL games played, he has 391 goals and 895 points.