Insider says no truth to Marner extension rumours, trade could come this week

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Cooper Godin
June 24, 2024 (11:59)

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An insider has said that contract extension rumours regarding Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner aren't true and a trade could come as early as this week.

On Monday morning, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff was a guest on Sportsnet 590 radio and mentioned that the Toronto Maple Leafs have no interest in signing Mitch Marner to a contract extension, despite reports suggesting otherwise.

Seravalli also mentioned that if the Toronto Maple Leafs are to trade Mitch Marner, there's a strong possibility that it could happen as early as this week. Trade talks are heating up around the NHL and we usually see action pick up around the NHL Entry Draft and the opening of free agency, both of which are within the next seven days.

"I think the Toronto Maple Leafs are going to do everything within their power to try and make something happen" Seravalli said regarding a Marner trade.

It's easy to see why Marner would be the most logical piece to part with among their core, if a trade does indeed happen. He's still young, has the potential of being a consistent 90+ point player during the regular season and can play on the first line and first powerplay unit. Marner is an elite player, there's no denying that despite his struggles in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The other members of the 'Core 4' are either likely unmovable or untouchable. John Tavares' contract would probably make him unmovable as it wouldn't be easy for a team to fit an $11 million cap on their books, even though he only has one year remaining on his deal. As for Auston Matthews and William Nylander, both of them are more than likely untouchable and will be core pieces for the Toronto Maple Leafs going forward.

There's no question that there will be plenty of teams interested in Mitch Marner's services via a trade, however the price will be quite high, for reasons mentioned above. The 27-year-old Marner has quite a few years left in his prime and teams will want to capitalize on that, which could lead to a bidding war on the trade market and land the Toronto Maple Leafs a very solid return.