After nine seasons in Toronto, Mitch Marner is moving on.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have reportedly signed Marner to an eight-year deal worth $12 million annually, with the plan to send his rights to the Vegas Golden Knights in a sign-and-trade deal prior to free agency, per multiple reports. Though Marner has signed the contract, the trade has not yet been completed.
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The 28-year-old right wing was set to be an unrestricted free agent on Tuesday; instead, he will be heading to Vegas under a contract worth $96 million total.
By acquiring the rights, Vegas are able to keep Marner under a maximum-length eight-year contract, as opposed to signing him in free agency, where any deal would be limited to seven years. Additionally, by working with Vegas, Toronto will be able to get something in return for Marner, one of their star players.
On Saturday, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that Toronto and Vegas were in talks on the deal, with The Athletic’s Chris Johnston confirming soon after. Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving chose not to comment on the trade Saturday, but did tell reporters that the team would rather get something for Marner rather than letting his contract expire, via The Hockey News’ David Alter.
Marner, a Toronto area native who was drafted by his hometown team in 2015, was the Maple Leafs’ leading scorer last season, putting up 102 points, with a career-high 75 assists. At age 28, he has 741 career points in the NHL.
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But Marner has faced a lot of pressure while playing for Toronto. For years, the Maple Leafs have fallen short in the playoffs, failing to make it past the second round of the NHL playoffs since 2001; much of that playoff pressure has fallen on Marner.
This season, after winning the Atlantic division with a 52-26 record, Toronto beat the Ottawa Senators in the first round, but fell to the Florida Panthers (the eventual champions) after forcing a Game 7.
On Thursday, Treliving told reporters that Marner was going to test the free agency market, signaling that an extension to stay in Toronto was less likely.
Toronto has tried to make chances to alter the team’s postseason success, most recently choosing not to renew the contract of team president Brendan Shanahan in May. Now, the Maple Leafs may be starting next season without one of their stars.
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