Sharks issue statement after John Tavares picks Toronto

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The Sharks didn't get the news they were hoping for on Sunday morning.

After a long courtship of top free agent John Tavares, the former Islander agreed to a seven-year, $77 million deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Less than an hour after Tavares made his decision known, Sharks GM Doug Wilson issued a statement regarding the news.

"I want to thank John Tavares and Pat Brisson for their interest in the San Jose Sharks and professionalism throughout this negotiation process. While we are naturally disappointed in the final decision, it's extremely heartening to know that the top players in this league consistently view San Jose as a place they want to play. This is echoed by our own world-class players, such as Logan Couture, Brent Burns, Joe Thornton, Joe Pavelski, Evander Kane, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Martin Jones, who have continually chosen to bypass a chance at unrestricted free agency in recent years because they want to play in San Jose.

"This success can be directly attributed to owner Hasso Plattner, whose passionate support and financial commitment to bring a winner to San Jose is second to none in all of professional sports. 

"Looking forward, we remain in an excellent position to add to our group should the right situation present itself and as I stated a few weeks ago, we're very excited about our team as it stands heading into next season."

While the Sharks missed out on Tavares, they are reportedly close to announcing an eight-year extension with Logan Couture.

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