Last week, in a back room of the Islanders practice facility, John Tavares sat on a stool, as a room of directors, cameramen, PA's, and staff watched as he shot a commercial for Vita Coco.
It is never surprising to see athletes on commercials. But there was still something kind of unfamiliar about seeing Tavares, a New York Islander, doing one. As I stood in the back of the room, trying desperately not to sneeze and ruin everybody's day, I distracted myself by trying to recall if I'd ever seen any Islander in my lifetime in a national TV spot -- I couldn't.