Photo credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Mitch Marner‘s situation in Toronto was not handled well from the get-go, but one Maple Leafs executive may hold more blame than anyone else in the organization.
Many, I’m sure, are pointing the finger at Marner for how it all went down, and to be fair, some of that blame is warranted, as he could have waived his NMC at any point in time if he was ready to leave. However, there’s someone else in Toronto who was even more to blame, and it was hinted at during a recent edition of The Steve Dangle Podcast.
During an appearance on the show late last week, TSN’s Chris Johnston revealed to Steve Dangle, Jesse Blake, Adam Wylde and the listeners tuning in that before Mitch Marner’s no movement clause kicked in, Kyle Dubas did indeed look at trading him.
It is widely believed that Dubas did want to initiate some big changes a couple of years ago, and what that tells us is that Brendan Shanahan may have actually forbade Dubas from moving Marner, which ultimately led to the Leafs getting a whole lot less than they could have gotten two summers ago for the star winger.
“The hard part to know is — he was 100% going to gauge the market [on Marner],” Johnston said.
The Mitch Marner debacle can be traced back to former Maple Leafs president, Brendan Shanahan
Johnston also mentioned that Dubas would never have traded Marner in 2023 if the offers weren’t strong. However, the fact that he was ready to explore the market, but no deal ever came to fruition, and it’s a pretty good indicator that his boss, Brendan Shanahan, took that bullet out of the chamber by informing Dubas that he wouldn’t approve any deal involving Marner.
“That summer, I think he would have certainly wanted to listen and see what was out there, and they had until July 1st of 2023 to move Marner without any trade protection being involved, so they could have traded him to any of the other 31 teams.”
The panel also mentioned the notion that Shanahan had a discussion with new Leafs GM Brad Treliving before hiring him, informing the veteran GM that Marner was untouchable and that any changes made would have to be made outside of the team’s core players.
Johnston also revealed that the Leafs never had any intention of moving William Nylander either. Nylander’s name had been involved in several rumours around that time.
Whatever the truth is, we may never know the full extent of it. Still, when an Insider is speaking with such confidence on the matter, it makes you wonder if there’s some fire beneath that smoke.
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Report Regarding Mitch Marner Shines a Light on Who Was Really to Blame for How it All Went Down
Do you think Brendan Shanahan stepped in to block a Mitch Marner trade in the summer of 2023?