Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner has been on an absolute tear as of late.
Entering Wednesday night’s game against the San Jose Sharks, Marner has recorded at least one point in each of his last 17 games played. In that time, the 25-year-old has tallied six goals and 17 assists for 23 points in total.
There have been only three games during Marner’s 17-game point streak in which he has not recorded at least one assist. Overall, he has assisted on one or more goals in 18 of Toronto’s 24 games this year, powering his club to a top-five spot in the league standings.
With 21 assists on the year, Marner leads the Maple Leafs entering Wednesday’s tilt and ranks tied for fifth in the NHL. He leads all Maple Leafs skaters with 28 points so far this season.
Mitch Marner needs one point against the Sharks to make history.
Marner has always been an assist-first type of player, but his goal-scoring has picked up in his last few games. He’s got three markers in as many contests, bringing his total number of goals on the year to seven.
It’s been an impressive and underrated run for the Maple Leafs star over the last month. Fast forward to Wednesday, and he is one game away from etching his name in history beside a pair of former Maple Leafs.
Only two players in the history of the franchise have managed to record a point in 18 consecutive games. Those players are Darryl Sittler and Ed Olczyk, and if he can register a point against the Sharks, Mitch Marner will join the club.
Scoring a pile of points is nothing new for the 2015 first-round draft pick. He has eclipsed the 90-point mark twice in his young career, including last season when he notched a career-high 97 points (35 goals and 62 assists) in 72 games.
Somehow, whether the buzz is around other NHL stars, or even his own teammate, Auston Matthews, Marner never seems to generate the attention that he has earned since entering the league as a rookie in 2016.
In 451 games, he has 145 goals, 338 assists, and 483 points to go with a plus-75 rating.
Mitch Marner has been everything the Maple Leafs could have hoped for and more, and now, he’s one game away from seeing all of his hard work pay off in record-setting fashion.