David Tavau Junior Review

[Ahma 1,288]

David grew up in Davos, Switzerland. Until now, he has been playing and honing his skills in the Swiss National League and KHL. In the National League (NLA), where the competition is at the top of European ice hockey leagues, besides KHL. The ZSC Lions is one of the best teams in the country and Tavau was the backbone of the Lions defense for 3 short years. He played in Zurich from the age of 20 to 23. After three years of success and wins in Zurich, he decided to move on from the NLA and joined the HC CSKA Moscow KHL team. Tavau played in CSKA Moscow for 2 years (age 23 – 24).

 

Tavau has always dreamed of playing in the VHL, the big stage. He grew up HC Davos Dynamo fan. He dreams of one day playing for the Purple. For more than 5 years, Tavau prepared to be his absolute best to join the Dynamo. And now, at 25 years of age, he is finally on his way to fulfill his dream. Due complications with the KHL and NLA leagues, Tavau hasn’t been able to declare for the VHL/VHLM earlier in his career. Not feeling like he is ready for VHL also played a factor in this.

 

Let’s take a look back at Tavau’s early steps. He started playing at the age 7 for the HC Davos (the Swiss National League team) junior system. Tavau was in the junior system until the age 17, when he was asked to play for the HC Davos men’s team. He was deemed talented and physically ready for it. His talents and skill did not go unnoticed by the team management. So, Tavau has played against men from a young age. When he was 16, Tavau played a handful of games for the HC Davos men’s team, because of injuries.

 

Last season (age of 24), Tavau posted 54 points of which 46 were assists and 8 goals in 60 games played. Tavau is not much of a goal scorer, he prefers dishing the puck out or shooting the puck at the net for rebounds or redirects. HC CSKA Moscow’s season ended in the conference finals. The season before that (Tavau age 23) CSKA won the KHL championship, Gagarin Cup, and Tavau played a major part in that. He posted 18 points in 20 playoff games. CSKA was also the regular season champion. Tavau’s stat line: 62GP – 9G – 50A – 59P.

Tavau and his teammates celebrating a game tying goal in the Gagarin Cup finals.

Tavau’s years in Zurich were solid and his development was fast. When Tavau joined ZSC Lions, it took time to adapt to new surroundings. First season in Zurich was okay, 38GP – 3G – 16A – 19P. Age 21, second season in Zurich: 50GP – 6G – 30A – 36P. Third season: 49GP – 7G – 36A – 43P.

 

Defense has always been Tavau’s strong suit and the biggest part of his defensive ability is his positioning and defensive awareness. Tavau isn’t overly aggressive and doesn’t go for hits all the time. This can be seen in his stats over the years, under 50 hits every season and over 60 shots blocked. Tavau plays a clean game with an average of 10PIM per season. Tavau's playmaking ability is nothing to scoff at either.

Edited March 13, 2021 by Ahma

[mattyIceman 1,037]

Davos getting another homegrown prospect!

[Ahma 1,288]

2 hours ago, MattyIce said:

Davos getting another homegrown prospect!

fun fact: Tavau literally means Davos in Romansh (a Swiss language)

[mattyIceman 1,037]