NHL Rumors: Mitch Marner rejected long-term offer from Maple Leafs
According to the latest NHL rumors, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner would probably turn down an eight-year, $11 million per year long-term offer.
The top priority for the Toronto Maple Leafs offseason is re-signing restricted free agent Mitch Marner. They got Auston Matthews extension done during the regular season, but Marner is proving to be far more difficult to negotiate with. According to the latest NHL rumors, he recently rejected a long-term offer for eight years with an $11 million average annual value.
This report comes from Elliotte Friedman during a recent segment with Tim & Sid. The Leafs are reportedly willing to pay him $11 million, but only if the contract is a long-term one. Friedman said Marner would probably sign if it the term was shorter, but he doesn’t seem too interested in a long-term deal.
Negotiations are heading the wrong way and, with teams eligible to sign him to an offer sheet on July 1, time is running out.
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Marner would prefer a short-term deal, much like the one Matthews signed. Matthews signed a five-year deal with an average annual value of $11.634 million.
However, Matthews has proven to be an elite goal scorer. Over the past 25 years, Alex Ovechkin and Paul Kariya are the only two players who have averaged more goals per game in their first three seasons than him. The latter is a Hall of Fame player and the former is considered by many to be the greatest goal scorer ever.
Sure, Matthews have trouble staying healthy. But when he’s on the ice, he has a skill he can point to as being elite. Scoring goals gets you paid and everything Matthews has done so far suggests he is nothing short of an elite goal scorer.
Marner, on the other hand, doesn’t have the same resume. While he is coming off an impressive seasons with 94 points and 68 assists, the 2018-19 season is the first time he’s passed the point per game milestone.
It’s hard to deny playing with John Tavares gave Marner a huge boost. His previous career high was 69 points during the 2017-18 season. Marner is a great playmaker, but he’s not elite. He needs to prove he can do what he did during the 2018-19 season on a consistent basis before it’s fair to call his playmaking “elite”.
Also, Marner is a wing. Traditionally, wings make less than centers. Matthews is a center, so naturally, he should be paid more.
The Maple Leafs allowed William Nylander to strong-arm them into a deal at the last minute. They need to be firm with Marner. He has very little leverage. If Marner wants $11 million per season, the Leafs would be wise to tell him to find a team willing to do so. His comparables suggest a $9.25 million AAV is right in line with what he deserves.
Next. 3 Teams Who Should Sign Marner To Offer Sheet. dark
This game of chicken between the Leafs and Marner is reaching a critical point. Marner can begin talking to other teams about an offer sheet starting on Tuesday, June 25. He can be signed to one starting on July 1. There’s still time for the Leafs to work something out with Marner even after those dates, but time’s slowly starting to run out. It will be interesting to see who blinks first.