Team Ready to Step In and Snatch Mitch Marner from Maple Leafs, per Insider
One team is linked to a potential swoop for Mitch Marner that could end his time as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Mitch Marner, in the final of a six-year contract, could be the big target of a team looking to make a massive free agent splash this offseason, and target Marner as an option.
There have been active discussions from Toronto's front office and Mitch Marner's team, but no deal is currently in place for Marner, who'll be a free agent come July.
Marner, 27, has 16 goals, 54 assists, & 70 points in 52 games played with the Toronto Maple Leafs this season.
One new report now indicates that one team is looking to be aggressive to lure Marner out of Toronto as part of a major plan by ownership to build a contending team.
Report: Utah Hockey Club Eyeing Marner As Possible Acquisition
The move is an ambitious ploy by Utah who not only look at a new star player for their lineup, but to kickstart a new identity.
Utah Hockey Club is planning a rebrand for the 2025-26 seasons, with three names, including keeping HC, as well as two options in the Mammoth & Outlaws.
Utah is reportedly looking to add either Mitch Marner or Mikko Rantanen to their lineup, according to David Pagnotta of 'The Fourth Period'.
Both Marner and Rantanen are free agents at the end of this season. Rantanen was recently traded from the Colorado Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes, expected to get a major contract in the free-agent market.
As Pagnotta outlines, Utah is positioning themselves as a threat for free agents with their focus on spending for a new era.
With a motivated ownership group, led by Ashley and Ryan Smith, Utah is poised to be a serious contender this summer. They have plenty of salary cap space leading up to the deadline, and $26.575 million in total cap space for 2025-26 with no significant free agents of their own due for major raises. - David Pagnotta
While the Toronto Maple Leafs still look to sign Mitch Marner long-term, they now have one name roadblock in Utah being a hot pursuiter for a free-agent star.
If the Leafs do lose Mitch Marner to Utah, this could lead to Toronto swooping in for Rantanen, expected to need a similar contract to Marner.
Rantanen, 28, has 26 goals and 66 points in 54 games played with Colorado and Carolina.
As Utah looks to finally grow into a proper identity heading into its second year as a hockey club, they appear poised to fight for top talent, something that will lead to the Toronto Maple Leafs having to make sure they can close their hometown star Marner if they really want him back.
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