Maple Leafs Championship Path Revealed Now That Mitch Marner is Potentially Gone
Photo credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
The Toronto Maple Leafs and their Stanley Cup journey has a much clearer path now that Mitch Marner is headed out of town this upcoming free agency.
After years of failure, the Maple Leafs are making a bunch of changes this upcoming offseason. Already gone is President Brendan Shanahan, and they are going to be looking at a departing Mitch Marner as he heads elsewhere this summer.
However, it might not be all terrible when it comes to those changes, and for hockey analyst Steve Kouleas, he believes that the Maple Leafs can draw parallels from their Atlantic Division rivals.
Mitch Marner's departure draws similarities to Jonathan Huberdeau's
Kouleas was a guest on the Leafs Morning Take podcast to discuss the Maple Leafs and Mitch Marner, with him drawing a comparison between Marner heading out and Florida seeing Jonathan Huberdeau do the same:
If Marner's your Huberdeau; then you got to go out and get your [Matthew] Tkachuk if you wanna look at it in that regard. There are things they need to tweak, but they are also really good.
As a reminder, Huberdeau was part of a blockbuster deal that brought Tkachuk to Florida after a contract dispute in Calgary. To be fair, Mackenzie Weegar is a very solid defenseman, and Cole Schwindt ended up having a respectable first season this year.
But it's less about Toronto being able to trade away Marner for assets, and more about how they can change that DNA.
The times they are-a changing for the Maple Leafs
Losing Huberdeau stung because the Panthers lost one of their best offensive players coming off a blistering 115-point season (30G, 85A), but they brought in someone who wasn't necessarily as flashy but he certainly brought a new look.
It's not that Tkachuk is bad on offense, quite the opposite. But it's how he generates that offense and the other intangibles that led the Panthers to target him. He's nasty, brutish, and plays as much of a mental game as he does physical.
It's the mindset that Brad Treliving wants in Toronto (clearly, he drafted Tkachuk after all). So while he can't get him, he certainly could find a similar player.
Looking obviously at the optics, Brad Marchand makes the most sense when it comes to changing the DNA and bringing everything Tkachuk brings. He might not be a 100-point player, but he's steady, reliable and one helluva playoff performer.
Plus he can look at some much smaller additions like Tanner Jeannot or Boone Jenner that would make a ton of sense from a coaching and roster standpoint, not cost too much, and add more size and physicality.
Long gone are the days of Sheldon Keefe and Kyle Dubas using finesse, speed and skill in order to find their minimal success.
It's Brad Treliving and Craig Berube's time to make the team bigger, stronger, and nastier much like the Panthers who defeated them.
I guess if you can't beat 'em, you may as well join 'em.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 17 | 546 ANSWERS Maple Leafs Championship Path Revealed Now That Mitch Marner is Potentially Gone Do you think Mitch Marner is Toronto's Jonathan Huberdeau? | ||
| Yes | 370 | 67.8 % |
| No | 176 | 32.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
TRENDING NOW
