John Tavares apparently has his list, so who has the edge?

With invites to the CAA office in Los Angeles distributed to his curated list, John Tavares has done the right thing with unrestricted free agency on the horizon: he will, at minimum, entertain teams aiming to pry him loose after nine seasons with the New York Islanders.

The Athletic’s Arthur Staple attempted to piece together Tavares’ list on Sunday night, naming the Toronto Maple Leafs, San Jose Sharks, Dallas Stars, along with the Islanders to the register. And since, colleague Pierre LeBrun filled in the blanks, adding the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning to the list of teams told to ready their pitch.

What’s left us guessing with less than a week before free agency opens is that, aside from winning, we don’t really know what Tavares covets on his big-money contract.

So let’s focus on the applicants. Here’s what the five teams can offer:

Maple Leafs

Let’s begin with the obvious, here. Tavares is a Toronto-area kid — which serves as either the most compelling reason to listen or tune out.

Only those close to Tavares know whether or not playing for the Leafs means something personally, let alone carries enough significance to have him surrender the relative anonymity he has in a sports market like Brooklyn or a smaller hockey market of his choosing. But if Tavares wants that pressure, the scrutiny, the stage, then the Leafs hold a distinct advantage over the other teams chasing his services.

Then again, it’s important to note that Toronto’s courtship of Tavares is far different than the failed attempts the franchise has had in luring game-changing talent in the past. He wouldn’t wear the burden of having to carry a team to championship on his own. Rather, Tavares would be fitting in — almost as a complimentary piece — on an immensely talented roster that has built a contender the right way. That’s an incredible luxury.

Other teams can offer the chance to win. Right now the Leafs have that, and more.

Sharks

If it’s a lifestyle change without the limelight that Tavares craves, he could do much worse than with a move to San Jose.

Not only would he be leaving behind the hectic borough-to-borough commute for the easy living that so many NHL stars have sworn by in Northern California, but Tavares would immediately elevate the Sharks from Western Conference gatekeeper to title contender. This, while still maintaining the featured role he’s had for the last nine seasons in Long Island (and Brooklyn), and commanding a massive chunk of the approximate $18 million the Sharks have in available cap space.

There is a legitimate best-of-both-worlds scenario with San Jose, and one worth listening on.

Stars

Dallas came across as a bit of a surprise when Tavares’ initial list was reported. But just because it might have been the least-discussed destination doesn’t make a move there any less intriguing.

With Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin in the fold already, Tavares would give the Stars three of the top eight NHL point-getters over the last six seasons and a trio that could put forth legitimate challenges for Art Ross and Rocket Richard trophies. Add Alexander Radulov and John Klingberg to the discussion, and Dallas now possesses one of the strongest talent nucleuses in the NHL and a case to be considered one of the league’s best teams.

The money is also bigger in tax-free Texas. The Stars will soon have to pony up on Seguin’s unrestricted free agent deal, but Jason Spezza’s expiring deal will account for a significant portion of that.

Dallas may be the place to maximize earning potential — even with the extra year the Islanders can offer.

Bruins

Boston has five forwards earning in excess of $6 million on long-term deals already, so major roster manipulation would be required in order to house Tavares’s ostensible eight-figure contract. Given where Boston stands in just about every metric that assesses performance, that might seem somewhat unnecessary.

But the Bruins’ readiness to compete has to be part of the lure. Surely if Tavares has to slot behind any centre, it’s Patrice Bergeron to form a peerless one-two punch down the middle.

Still, it’s hard to imagine Tavares not having to accept major concessions to make a move to Boston happen.

Lightning

Well, wouldn’t this be something.

The Lightning have everything that might interest a player like Tavares — a highly competitive roster, pleasant climate, tax breaks, a friend in Steven Stamkos.

But with even more money tied up long term, and with Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point one season away from applying the latest financial vice for Steve Yzerman to deal with, this seems like a pipe dream for the Bolts.

Still — you ain’t passing up that meeting.

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