NHL analysts argue about what direction the Toronto Maple Leafs should take with Mitch Marner
TSN contributors Jeff O'Neill and Darren Dreger debated what the Maple Leafs should do with Mitch Marner going into the playoffs this year.
The two NHL analysts were asked what they think the Leafs should do with the pending free agent during the second intermission report of the Leafs game tonight.
O'Neill took a cautious stance, saying the team should be careful with Marner because they have not had any playoff success with him.
Obviously, this has been a consistent narrative surrounding Marner throughout his career, but to be fair, the winger hasn't done much to prove it wrong.
"I just don't know why, as good as Mitch Marner is as a player and as good as he's played of late, I don't know why you would want to lock up guys long term when you haven't seen playoff success. There's been a phrase tossed around this organization 'If you have time on your side use it' so why not use it in this particular situation."
Dreger meanwhile took a very different stance. He believes Marner should be a top priority of the organization, and they should get him signed before the playoffs come around.
He justifies this by saying that it would be a 'distraction' for the team if they went into the playoffs with Marner still as a pending free agent.
"Look there's no question the ability of Mitch Marner or the contribution to Mitch Marner to the Toronto Maple Leafs as a whole. I think it's a priority for both the player and the organization. This cannot be a distraction going into the playoffs and it will be if they don't get the extension done."
The debate came about as Marner was once again a centerpiece of the Leafs through the first two periods of tonight's game against the Utah Hockey Club.
He has two of the three goals in the game, giving him points in nine of his last ten games.
In fact, Marner has been on another level since Auston Matthews left the lineup.
Including tonight, the 27-year-old has 14 points including six goals in the eight games Matthews has missed. He has two points in every game over that stretch except for one, when the Leafs were shut out by the Ottawa Senators.
It will be interesting to see which direction the Leafs go. Both arguments have merit, but at the end of the day, the Leafs could change all the narratives by going on a deep playoff run. Hopefully, they will, and Marner will be at the center of it.
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