Mitch Marner leads all active NHLers in this insane stat
For superstar winger Mitch Marner, the 2021-22 season has been the tale of two seasons. in the first half, Marner not only dealt with injury, but also inconsistency and a bout with COVID-19. However, the second half of his season has been unparalleled, as the 24-year-old has been the hottest player in the National Hockey League since January 1st.
Just how impressive has Marner been? Well, let's put it this way - he's unmatched among active players in terms of production following an All-Star break.
What we're seeing from the Markham, Ontario native this season is not only immense growth from an offensive perspective, but also from a mental perspective. In the past, Marner has been known to let things get to him. This season, he used a fairly slow start by his standards to fuel him to hit another gear in the second half, which has led to the enigmatic winger posting career highs in goals, points percentage and, surprisingly, hits as well.
If you count yourself among those who watched the Amazon Prime docuseries "All or Nothing: Toronto Maple Leafs", you'll recall a scene where Matthews and Marner remain in full gear in the Leafs' locker room long after the conclusion of Game 7 against the Habs. After blowing a 3-1 series lead and being bounced from the playoffs by an inferior opponent, Matthews and Marner were absolutely crushed. This season, both young cornerstones look like different players.
For Matthews, last year's disappointment fueled a record-setting season and what could amount to both a second consecutive Rocket Richard Trophy and the first Hart Trophy of his young NHL career - though the voting is expected to be a lot closer than it should be.
For Marner, an especially rough Game 6 and Game 7 forced him to re-evaluate how he approaches the game. This season, he has played fearlessly, developed his shot and refined his incredible playmaking abilities (as if that was even possible). This season, Marner is not only a threat to create offensive chances for his linemates, but with 33 goals on the season, Marner is a legitimate finisher as well and needs to be respected as a shooting threat when he's on the ice.
All of these things amount to what is likely to be a very different postseason for the Buds. Their first round opponent may be a tougher one than they'd have liked, but the team itself is tougher as well - both mentally and physically.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 17 | 421 ANSWERS Mitch Marner leads all active NHLers in this insane stat Is Mitch Marner worth his nearly $11M cap hit now? | ||
| Absolutely | 371 | 88.1 % |
| No | 50 | 11.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
