Analyst Brings Up Interesting Question About Mitch Marner Following OT Winner for Canada
Photo credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images
A former Maple Leafs defenseman has suggested something potentially exciting about Mitch Marner's overtime winner for Team Canada this week.
Team Canada head coach Jon Cooper thinks very highly of Mitch Marner, as is indicated by the fact that only Connor McDavid saw more minutes among forwards in Wednesday's 4 Nations opener against Sweden.
While Sidney Crosby stole the show with three assists, including one on Marner's OT winner, Marner earned the praise of a nation, while some Maple Leafs fans questioned why he can't seem to come up clutch for the Leafs like that in the playoffs.
Following his overtime heroics, former Leafs defender Carlo Colaiacovo joined Leafs fans in hoping that this is a turning point for Marner when it comes to 'big game' performances, for one specific reason.
"That could be the start of a turning point moment in Mitch Marner's career, because for years, people in Toronto have been wanting to witness that type of moment for Mitch Marner to have as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs," Colaiacovo began. "That moment that Mitch Marner just created [on Wednesday] could finally make him feel like what it's supposed to feel like and look like when a game is on the line and he's asked to be that guy, because he's finally created that moment for himself... I just hope that that moment allows Marner to know who he has to be in that moment when the time comes for the Maple Leafs."
For Marner, there would be no better time than this post-season to turn into a big-game player for the Leafs, as he will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1st of a deal isn't hammered out before then.
Many believe that Marner's future in Toronto may depend on his playoff performance, but with the exponential jump in the salary cap over the next three seasons, Marner's asking price will be sky-high, and the Leafs may not want to pay it if he can't show up for them in the big moments.
Marner currently leads the Leafs in scoring with 71 points, 16 points clear of William Nylander, and may finally reach the century mark for the first time in his career.
The question is; can Marner use the 4 Nations Face-Off to determine who he is in big games, or will we see the same, flawed star forward when there's a Stanley Cup on the line? Only Marner can answer that question, and he'll have to do that through his play.
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