John Tavares is currently being courted as an impending unrestricted free agent by five American teams and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Montreal Canadiens are not in the race for all sorts of reasons; that’s his prerogative.



But taxes should not be one of them.



Every year it’s the same story. When the Canadiens strike out in free agency and have trouble attracting the best players to Montreal, taxes always come up as a serious deterrent. But it’s simply not true to say a player would automatically be crippled financially by taxes if he came to play for the Canadiens or the Maple Leafs or any other team in Canada.



“I can make it so signing in Montreal is the same as signing in Texas,” an agent told The Athletic.



Really? Residents of Texas pay federal tax at a lower rate than Canadians and pay no state tax on their home games. That’s tough to beat, no?



“In my opinion, the tax rate can be as low, or if...