Toronto Maple Leafs: Marner must decide what’s most important to him

With ongoing speculation surrounding Mitch Marner’s contract situation, he must determine how much he wants to remain with the Toronto Maple Leafs long-term.

Mitch Marner has made it clear he has no intention of discussing a contract extension until after the 2018-19 season concludes. However, such is life in the Toronto Maple Leafs universe, this hasn’t stopped ongoing speculation about how negotiations will play out.

The situation hasn’t been helped this week, with a couple of rumors doing the rounds. The first one relates to TSN‘s Darren Dreger and comments he made on an edition of Insider Trading.

Dreger claimed that teams are “100 percent” preparing an offer sheet for Marner, if he reaches July 1 without a new deal. In some respects you can argue this is stating the obvious; who wouldn’t want to consider adding such a talent to their roster?

However, when you break it down, the likelihood is this is something the Leafs and their fans shouldn’t be too concerned by. One of the main reasons for this, comes down to the potential compensation.

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Any team which is genuine about signing Marner, knows it will take a significant amount of money. As a result, the reality is a team would then be looking at giving up at least two first round draft picks, a second and a third, if the winger accepts their offer sheet; in the worst case scenario, it would be four first round picks.

This compensation combined with the required cap space, should be enough to put most teams off. And even for those teams who remain prepared to make an offersheet, Marner will still have to be willing to accept it.

In that respect, this ties into the second rumor surrounding the 21-year-old; one which could be more genuine reason for concern. It again relates to Dreger, and other comments he made on TSN 1050.

Dreger said that Marner’s camp seem confident they’re worth every cent that Auston Matthews is worth. Now again, this is just speculation as far as we know, but it does give Leafs fans something to ponder.

There is no denying Marner is an excellent talent who still has intriguing upside. In addition, we appreciate he finished with more points than Matthews last season, and is again leading his teammate in 2018-19.

However, aside from the fact Matthews has missed more playing time through injury, it seems hard to fathom why Marner’s camp would believe he can make as much money? Or more to the point, that he is worth as much.

Matthews is the superior talent, no matter how you break it down. He is a superstar, a franchise player and whatever other superlative you want to throw at him; Marner just isn’t on the same level.

Ironically, the only way you could see Marner getting as much money as Matthews, relates back to any potential offer sheets. Opposing teams know they would have to throw big bucks at Marner to persuade him to sign with them; but what team will offer anything close to what Matthews will likely get, again knowing it would mean giving up four first rounders?

With all this in mind — and once more stressing that we appreciate the majority of it is related to speculation — Marner has to decide what’s most important to him. He has a chance to be part of something special long-term in Toronto.

Assuming the 2015 fourth overall draft pick want to be part of a consistent contender, he should want to remain with his hometown team. However, if he is to do this, he knows he will have to make some concession on his next contract.

This becomes more apparent, especially when considering the Leafs’ salary cap situation and the other players — such as Matthews — who need to be re-signed. Essentially, Marner has to decide what’s most important to him, by finding the right balance between playing for a contender and how much money he is willing to accept on an extension.

What is your take on this entire situation? Are you concerned at all about how negotiations will play out with Marner, or are you confident he will sign an extension to remain with the Toronto Maple Leafs long-term? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.