Toronto Maple Leafs: 3 takeaways from season ending press conference

Marner doing himself no favours

It is no secret that Mitch Marner doesn’t have a lot of rope with the fanbase right now and really it has been that way since we started hearing about the contract negotiations.

Then in his address to the media Marner made a critical error and while he might have been trying to show honesty and sincerity with his comments, it didn’t do himself any favours. Just in case you missed it, here is what the he had to say when he was talking about his performance.

"“I felt like the first game I wasn’t engaged at all in physicalness or play at all. And from that point on, I got a lot more engaged, a lot more of the puck, kinda playing like my old self with controlling the puck and making plays,” Marner told reporters. “I don’t think zero goals is going to do the job. That’s the thing I’m frustrated about.”"

If there is one thing you should never do, it’s adding fuel to a raging fire and that’s what Marner just did to himself. Granted, speaking about your play while you’re frustrated will lead to a comment like this and hopefully, he realizes that it’s not going to sit well with fans.

This is a player who pushed to be paid as a superstar player in this league and openly admitted that he could have played with a better effort. If there is anything a player should never admit is that he didn’t give everything he had.

When the spotlight is on you, the one thing that should never be in question is a player’s effort, mindset and will. What will tell a lot about Marner is a commitment to being better in other areas of his game whether it’s improving his goal-scoring ability or defensive player.

For those who want to see Marner traded might be left disappointed and that means if he does return, he has to be willing to embrace the spotlight that he’s created for himself going forward.