Mitch Marner Breaks Silence on Being Asked to Waive His No-Trade Clause
Maple Leafs star Mitch Marner finally commented on the news that he was asked to waive his no-trade clause for a potential deal involving Mikko Rantanen.
In what was a near blockbuster and earth-shattering trade involving Mitch Marner and Mikko Rantanen, the Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto Maple Leafs could have looked a lot different after the trade deadline had everything gone through.
It was reported that Carolina had requested Marner, and that Toronto was entertaining the idea but it was reliant on Marner waiving his no-trade clause (though apparently they had a package involving a ton of prospects too).
Mitch Marner's Comments Regarding Contract and Trade Deadline
Marner stuck around obviously, and the star winger has opened up a bit regarding being asked to head elsewhere potentially:
But the forward, for as avoidant as he is regarding the contract situation, reiterated his desire to win as a member of the Maple Leafs:
Whether or not Marner is only talking about winning this year is up for debate, however a strong playoff run has its pros and cons for the star winger come free agency.
Pros? Marner wins with his childhood team, the one he has scratched and crawled through some very disappointing times with and it all culminates in the final year of his deal. It's poetic.
Plus it proves to him that this team can actually win the big one, and may give him a bit more of a reason to stick around (especially if Toronto can lock up Matthew Knies) as well as maybe make a little splash for some secondary scoring in free agency.
The con is that if Marner makes a statement in the playoffs, much like he has this season; that means he's going to get offered a lot.
Him finally proving he can perform when it counts means that teams won't hesitate now to throw a Brinks Truck worth of cash at Marner.
That's a worrying sign, especially since some bubble teams like Calgary and Columbus could easily afford Marner and give them that edge to push them over the top and now that he's a playoff performer? All the more reason to pay him.
Marner's reached 79 points in 62 games with Toronto, and is on pace to crush his career-high in points with 19 games left to go (he only needs 21 points to eclipse that mark and reach the century point for the first time ever).
So if he's going to continue to perform at this level, there's no doubt he's getting paid. If he wants to stay in Toronto however, he may need to go the Mikko Rantanen route and take a little bit of a pay cut.
$13M is nothing to sniff at; and it gives Marner more money and keeps him where he truly wants to be.
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