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When Will Maple Leafs’ Fans Come to Appreciate Mitch Marner?

Mitch Marner has been voted as the NHL’s All-Star right winger for two straight years. Why then don’t Toronto Maple Leafs fans appreciate him?

Mitch Marner will soon begin his seventh season with the Toronto Maple Leafs for six seasons. In his previous six seasons, he’s scored 138 goals and added 317 assists (for 455 points) in 427 games. For the past four of those seasons, he’s averaged more than a point a game.

Last season he seemed to work hard to add a goal-scoring dimension to his game. By doing so, he became more than a player who passed to linemate Auston Matthews. In addition to being a gifted offensive player, he’s also a good defender. He plays both special teams, scoring on the power play and stopping pucks from going into his own net on the penalty kill.

Although he’s only 25 years old, if he scored 83 points this season, he’ll move into the top 10 in Maple Leafs’ scoring history. That’s a lot of points for such a young player. In short, he’s a good player.

Related: 3 Key Questions Facing the Maple Leafs for the 2022-23 Season

Why Then Do Maple Leafs’ Fans Not Like Marner?

Reason One: Marner Put the Squeeze on the Maple Leafs’ Organization

Few Maple Leafs’ hockey fans question Marner’s skills and abilities. However, by and large, these fans do not like or appreciate Marner as a player. Certainly one reason is because he’s seen to have held the Maple Leafs’ organization hostage so he could get a huge payday. And, if he were seen as earning that payday, perhaps all would be well between Marner and his could-be fans.

Mitch Marner, Maple Leafs (Upper Deck 2020-21 Upper Deck Synergy – Purple Autograph Card)

But those contract negotiations left a bad taste with many Maple Leafs’ fans. He “squeezed” a huge $10.9 million dollar contract from the team, but only signed for six years. That overpayment coupled with such a short term seems to have created turmoil among Maple Leafs fans that’s still felt.

But in the long run, it was Marner and his advisors who set him up for the ire that many fans still feel today.

Reason Two: Marner Seems to Disappear in the Postseason

A second reason Marner is not appreciated is that, although he plays well during the regular season, fans believes he disappears during the playoffs. Fans specifically point to the fact that he’s only scored two goals in his last 25 playoff games.

Fans also seem to be good at the fact that Marner has not shown up in games where, if the Maple Leafs would have won the game, they would have taken the series. These fans (like waterbuffalo49) point to his having registered only a singe assist during the last eight games in which the team could have eliminated an opponent, but did not.

As excellent as Marner has played during the regular season, he’s seen to have become invisible during crunch time. In a comment section in The Hockey Writers, one reader (Mike from Ottawa) noted that he wouldn’t care if Marner scores 150 points during the regular season if he still doesn’t show up during the postseason. In fact, he believes Marner’s been a zero during the playoffs.

Related: GOOD NEWS FOR MAPLE LEAFS: NHL’S SALARY CAP WILL JUMP IN 2024-25

The Bottom Line on Marner and Maple Leafs’ Fans

The bottom line is that Marner has been a great player, but he’s not a star player. Star players are defined as leaders who raise their games and those around them when the games are the toughest – that’s during the playoffs.

Until this point in time, Marner hasn’t been able to bring the team what it needs in the most important games. Great player or not, he hasn’t been able to achieve at the highest level during the playoffs. As a result, he might be a highly-skilled player, but he isn’t yet truly great.

Auston Matthews Mitch Marner Maple Leafs
Auston Matthews Mitch Marner Maple Leafs

Maple Leafs’ fans seem to agree Marner is an exceptional hockey player. However, until he’s had postseason success – or even postseason production – any critique is warranted.

He might even be one of the very best right-wingers in the NHL. However, his lack of postseason production will define him until he shakes that definition. Thus far, he has not been able to do so.

As a result, he simply isn’t appreciated by Maple Leafs’ fans. He hasn’t yet been able to earn their appreciation.

Related: Maple Leafs News & Rumors: Marner, Matthews & Nylander

5 Comments

5 Comments

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  3. randysjwilliams

    September 7, 2022 at 10:36 am

    Oh – Bunkum!
    Marner is a “Star” NHLer. So is Matthews. No player is without flaws. Playoffs are the ultimate “team” games. Next!

  4. Pingback: It's Time for the Maple Leafs to Split Up Matthews & Marner

  5. Pingback: It’s Time for the Maple Leafs to Split Up Matthews & Marner – Hockey 1 on 1

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