Leafs Reportedly Eyeing Tampering Accusation Against Vegas Over Marner, But There's a Catch
Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
The Toronto Maple Leafs have a game plan in case they can't get a trade done with Vegas for Mitch Marner, but it's depending on the potential return back.
News coming out of the NHL Draft on Saturday was the Maple Leafs were in talks with the Golden Knights to send Mitch Marner over to Vegas in a sign and trade which would see Nicolas Roy and potential other pieces coming back to Toronto.
Toronto keeping an eye of potential tampering situation
It was a lot of speculation and there's nothing solid as of yet, but according to NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman, the reason being is that the Leafs are preparing to launch an investigation into contract tampering.
Speaking on his 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman noted that if the Vegas return isn't good for Toronto, and Marner decides to sign anyways; it's a clear violation of the rules and they want the NHL to take a look.
A couple GMs told me Saturday, they think the NHL is ITCHING to try and make an example out of someone.
It makes sense that Toronto wants to maximize their return, and it's a bit clearer now as to why GM Brad Treliving was pretty mum on the whole situation, especially knowing there are potential serious implications surrounding the deal.
Vegas needs to be careful not to gamble too much
Though there's no real indicator that Vegas has done any tampering, the fact that Marner has been spotted looking at homes there does leave little to the imagination in terms of his preferred destination.
The NHL has been vocal about trying to buckle down and prevent tampering and Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly laid down the law for teams who are trying to get a head start.
Unlike other pro sports leagues where there's a negotiation period, the NHL decides that July 1 is the first day to negotiate, and anything else is below board. It's a bit frustrating for the players, but it's their way of trying to create parity even though often times it feels like there's none.
If Vegas disregards the rules, the punishments could be severe, including the potential for the league to just cancel the contract with Marner altogether and setting him back to square one.
While there's nothing yet with regards to Marner and Vegas, if Toronto doesn't get a return and then sees their star forward head to Sin City?
Expect a long and thorough talk with the NHL on the matter.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 29 | 733 ANSWERS Leafs Reportedly Eyeing Tampering Accusation Against Vegas Over Marner, But There's a Catch Will Vegas end up acquiring Mitch Marner in a sign and trade? | ||
| Yes | 596 | 81.3 % |
| No | 137 | 18.7 % |
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