But when you combine his results — that of an average third-liner on an average NHL team — with the contract he has, for the rest of this season and all of next year, it becomes a deeper, more complex conversation. And that’s when the intangibles matter. Without them, his contract would make no sense.
The Leafs are in a tough spot against the cap next season. Perhaps as bad as it’s going to get, with this group of young players. Marleau’s $6.25-million per season contract has been one flagged again and again as a prime candidate to be moved in the summer of 2019, but if you listen to Babcock and all of the young Leafs and Marleau himself, it’s hard to imagine it playing out that way. The organization has grafted him onto the core of what they’re trying to create.
In a lot of ways, that’s great. The previous era Leafs, pre-Matthews and friends, was at times a dysfunctional mess off the ice. There were partying problems. There were players who were disrespectful to staff and teammates. Some veterans, of those teams four or five years ago, were quietly disgusted by what went on behind closed doors.
That’s not happening right now, as far as we can tell. Toronto’s kids by all accounts are good kids, players who are focused largely on results, even this early in their careers. The fact they spend so much time with Marleau, the franchise’s wholesome father figure, is a huge positive — one that could have benefits for years. They can see their future, if they stay on the right path.
