Reporter suggests Central Division team making Mitch Marner a priority
According to The Athletic's Mark Lazerus, one Western Conference team is expected to make Mitch Marner a priority if he reaches free agency next summer.
There doesn't appear to be any resolution in sight between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Mitch Marner, regardless of if it is a contract extension or trade proposal, leading many to believe the most likely scenario is Marner walking as a free agent on July 1st next summer.
There will be no shortage of suitors for the 27-year-old, but some teams will have to be creative to free up the cap space to give Marner the expected raise he'll be seeking on his current $10.9M salary.
Marner could opt to go the other way and join a rebuilding team like the Sam Jose Sharks or Chicago Blackhawks. The latter will have more than $35M in cap space next off-season and according to The Athletic's Mark Lazerus in his recent "Hawks mailbag" article, the Blackhawks are expected to be major players in free agency next summer, and Marner is the belle of the ball.
"The fact that Davidson was ready to trade next year's unprotected top pick (almost certainly a top-10 pick) to Columbus for the ability to draft Demidov is as clear a sign as any that the Blackhawks are ready to stop living years in the future. Could they deal away future picks for players? It's possible, but unlikely. Trades like that are rare, and it's not as if they'll be in the rental market at the trade deadline. But perhaps they look for this generation's Brian Campbell and/or Marian Hossa next summer � the player who signals to both the team and its fans that it's time to start taking the Blackhawks seriously again.
With Mitch Marner, Brock Boeser, Nikolaj Ehlers, John Tavares, Shea Theodore and Aaron Ekblad among the players slated for unrestricted free agency next summer, just as players such as Oliver Moore and Levshunov are ready to break into the NHL for good, things could get interesting very quickly," wrote Lazerus in response.
With the Hawks expected to be major players in free agency next off-season, they could take a big step forward in the 2025-2026 season, which could help sell Marner on joining Connor Bedard and former teammate Tyler Bertuzzi in Chicago.
In the meantime, though, if no resolution is reached between the Leafs and Marner, it could be a very long season for the creative winger as the media will surely continue to dig until they get the answers they're looking for.
Source: The Athletic
Hawks mailbag part 1
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 27 | 2169 ANSWERS Reporter suggests Central Division team making Mitch Marner a priority Where will Mitch Marner end up next off-season? | ||
| Maple Leafs | 1120 | 51.6 % |
| Blackhawks | 199 | 9.2 % |
| Golden Knights | 432 | 19.9 % |
| Other | 418 | 19.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
