Toronto Maple Leafs’ forward Mitch Marner, who will become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) in July if he doesn’t sign a new deal with the franchise, might be leaving Toronto. The 28-year-old, who was chosen by the Maple Leafs in the 2015 NHL Draft, has spent his entire NHL career with the franchise. However, insiders are pointing to his recent drop in production as one of the reasons he might not be offered the deal he wants.
Could Mitch Marner Join the Vegas Golden Knights?
Writing for The Athletic, Jesse Granger dissected the reasons behind the Vegas Golden Knights’ second-round playoff series loss to the Edmonton Oilers and what the franchise would have to do to elevate their game in future seasons. Granger pointed out that Vegas had sacrificed future opportunities to build a strong current roster, which was falling short of expectations despite an excellent regular-season showing. Vegas was the Pacific Division champion this season with 110 points.
“Vegas’ core is aging, and the hope is at best they can maintain their current level of play for a bit longer,” Granger wrote via The Athletic.
The hockey analyst also pointed out that the Golden Knights had a huge cap hit in the foreseeable future, with players like Mark Stone, William Karlsson, Jack Eichel, and Alex Pietrangelo on the books for the next two years at least. This meant that the core group of players was locked in barring some drastic trade moves.
However, Granger pointed out that the Knights could leverage the NHL’s increased salary cap to bring new talent to the roster rather than re-sign pending UFAs. Mitch Marner was one of the potential targets.
“After this disappointing second-round exit, it seems more likely they’ll look to upgrade on the wing in free agency. Toronto’s Mitch Marner will be the top prize, and should command one of the richest contracts in the league. Winnipeg’s Nikolaj Ehlers and Vancouver’s Brock Boeser are two of the other top winger options,” Granger wrote.
Marner is in the midst of a scoring slump, having failed to find the back of the net in his last three games. TSN reporter Chris Johnston on Thursday, May 15, pointed out that the Canadian player would likely test the market as a UFA.
“There is absolutely zero reason to believe that he’ll (Marner) be signing another contract in Toronto on or before July 1 – not after refusing to negotiate an in-season extension with the Leafs or even considering a request from management to waive his no-movement clause at the trade deadline,” Johnston said.
