{"id":131227,"date":"2025-09-09T12:52:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T12:52:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/131227\/"},"modified":"2025-09-09T12:52:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T12:52:09","slug":"matthew-knies-stepping-into-role-marner-never-wanted-the-hockey-writers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/131227\/","title":{"rendered":"Matthew Knies Stepping Into Role Marner Never Wanted – The Hockey Writers –"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mitch Marner<\/a> is and was an excellent hockey player. He was an elite playmaker comfortable with regularly producing for the Toronto Maple Leafs during his run with the team. What he wasn\u2019t comfortable with was the spotlight and the questions that came when the Leafs and the players needed to be held accountable during the not-so wonderful moments. <\/p>\n

Marner was the type of player who, when he spoke, sounded like he was giving canned responses that were fed to him by people who didn\u2019t always have his or the team\u2019s best interest at heart. He went from saying the fans treated him like a god, to essentially blaming them for his decision to leave. <\/p>\n

Oftentimes, listening to him respond to criticism from fans, media, and teammates was strange and awkard. His communication rarely felt natural. <\/p>\n

Matthew Knies<\/a> is a different kind of NHL player. <\/p>\n

Knies Is Already Embracing a New Role in Toronto<\/p>\n

Marner\u2019s trade to the Vegas Golden Knights this offseason marked the end of tiring relationship. Elliotte Friedman suggested<\/a> the split was like a real-life divorce. The 27-year-old was one of Toronto\u2019s most gifted playmakers, yet he never fully embraced the accountability and leadership mantle that comes with being one of the faces of the franchise. <\/p>\n

His legacy these days is one of a whiner, a complainer, and a player who still isn\u2019t willing to take his share of responsibility for the playoff failures of a Leafs team that needed him to step up in big moments. Fair or unfair, Marner\u2019s years in Toronto were often clouded by questions about whether he wanted to carry the burden when things got difficult.<\/p>\n

Related: Which Maple Leafs Get the Pressure With Marner Gone?<\/a><\/p>\n

Knies is proving quickly that he\u2019s game to take on a bigger role that comes with his bigger contract.<\/p>\n

The Leafs need more than just production. They need personality, voice, and a player who is willing to stand up when things aren\u2019t going right. Knies has already shown he\u2019s unafraid to take the heat. Following a loss to Florida, Knies called the team \u201ca little bit soft\u201d. It was a surprise to some to hear him be so direct, but that kind of candor \u2014 direct, uncomfortable, but honest \u2014 is exactly what Toronto\u2019s front office has been missing.<\/p>\n

\"MatthewToronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies (23) celebrates his goal against Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) during the third period of game one of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

He told The Athletic on Monday:<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone\u2019s always going to tell you the clich\u00e9 that pressure is a privilege and stuff. But I think it\u2019s honestly so much fun that there\u2019s so many people so invested in our group. I\u2019d be upset with fans if they\u00a0weren\u2019t\u00a0unhappy with my game if I wasn\u2019t playing well.\u201d<\/p>\n

source \u2013 \u201cLeafs\u2019 Matthew Knies won\u2019t shy away from the spotlight: \u2018I\u2019m playing for the whole city\u2019 \u2013 Joshua Kloke \u2013 The Athletic \u2013 09\/08\/2025<\/p>\n

How refreshing. And, Knies isn\u2019t just saying things like this to say them. As Kloke explains, he spent his summer in Minnesota, living with fellow hockey players, training, and mapping out his own development plan. He took that plan and told the Leafs exactly where he needed to improve \u2014 wall play, quickness, precision with the puck \u2014 and then put in the work. <\/p>\n

Toronto didn\u2019t need to micromanage him; he embraced the responsibility of growth on his own.<\/p>\n

Filling a Much Need Void In Toronto<\/p>\n

Marner rarely wanted to be the face of the group or the media in challenging moments. When things got tricky, he bickered with his teammates and shied away from taking questions. He wouldn\u2019t allow media at his charity events, and regurgitated the same kind of bland takes on the Leafs\u2019 consistent struggles. <\/p>\n

Fans won\u2019t miss that part of Marner after his move to Vegas. <\/p>\n

Knies, on the other hand, has embraced the role in just his third full NHL season. Knowing his new contract comes with more pressure, he\u2019s determined to become both a top-line scorer and a central voice in the room. His six-year, $46.5 million extension this summer signals that Toronto sees him as someone the franchise has faith in.<\/p>\n

Knies understands that there will be a transition period with Marner leaving. \u201cIt feels really weird, to be honest,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to picture him in a different jersey.\u201d Yet, in the same breath, he admitted what the trade meant: more room to become a voice on the team and a player fans can look to. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have to perform better and take on a little bit more ice time or take on a bigger role. If that\u2019s what\u2019s needed and expected, then you know I\u2019m going to be ready for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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