Mitch Marner situation reportedly impacting Toronto's ability to sign players

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TJ Tucker
July 3, 2024 (12:10)

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According to Sportnet's Elliotte Friedman, the situation surrounding Mitch Marner is causing players to think twice about signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs

Many analysts believe the Toronto Maple Leafs will start the 2024-25 season without star forward Mitch Marner. Marner was heavily criticized following the Leafs first-round exit from the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs for seemingly phoning it in and not putting in the effort required to advance. Given the amount of money Marner makes, this is a major issue for the Maple Leafs, and one insider says the problem goes much further than that.

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman cited unnamed players as telling him they have no interest in becoming a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs given the way the Marner situation has played out and the criticism he took from fans and media.

"It's funny because one player told me that there are some players who have watched from outside what's gone on with this whole Marner thing over the last month or two and they're like 'I want no part of that, like I don't want anything to do with that.'

It takes a special person [to play in Toronto]. But I think there were some players like 'Nope, that's not going to be me.'"

Toronto and Montreal are noted as being not just the toughest markets to play in for hockey, but perhaps the entire sports world. Players can go from heroes to zeroes in a matter of hours with one wrong move.

Marner has one season remaining on his current contract, with a cap hit of $10.9 million. He has expressed his desire to remain a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, but it's GM Brad Treliving who will have the final say. His task is to determine whether Toronto can improve their playoff performances while hanging on to core players.