Brian Burke reveals who the Maple Leafs need to move; it's not Mitch Marner
Photo credit: DAN HAMILTON-USA TODAY SPORTS
Former Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke still believes William Nylander is the 'Core Four' member the Leafs should move on from instead of Mitch Marner.
Midway through last season, the Leafs inked Nylander to an 8-year extension that will see him earn $11.5M per season, which is a significant raise over the $6.96M per season he earned on his previous deal.
With Nylander and Auston Matthews signed long-term, Leafs fans believe that one of Marner and John Tavares should be moved this off-season, but that is much easier said than done as they both hold no-movement clauses and both have publicly stated they intend to play out the final year of their respective contracts with the Leafs.
Things can change rapidly in the NHL, but as of right now, the Leafs will be "running it back" for the umpteenth time with the current core.
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On yesterday's edition of Leafs Morning Take with Nick Alberga and Jay Rosehill, former Leafs GM Brian Burke was a guest and he was asked about the entire Marner situation and believes that the Leafs should not even consider trading Marner.
"Obviously no trades and no moves, you really question the wisdom of all that now looking back. I think it's really a case where you have to convince one of these guys to get out. I think the logical guy to move would be William Nylander and not Mitch Marner. I've said that before but it might end up being Mitch Marner.
I think if you have talk into one of them into leaving, it's not popular and people aren't going to like it, but they're going to get it. Mitch Marner is a really important player on the team. He kills penalties. I know people are down on him right now, but he's a great kid, an important player. They're both great players, I just think Marner is a much more valuable player."
While Burke believes Marner is more valuable to the Leafs because he kills penalties, it is much easier to find penalty killers than it is to find players that perform in the post-season, which is where Marner has struggled often, unlike Nylander, who has shown up and produced when the team needed him to.
It also makes zero sense for the Leafs to trade someone that just signed an 8-year extension.
There has been no confirmation from Brad Treliving about the future of Marner yet, but new Leafs head coach Craig Berube said at the NHL Entry Draft that he was looking forward to coaching the skilled winger, indicating that Marner is set to play out the final year of his deal as a Leaf - for now at least.
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