Mitch “Magic” Marner Thread

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Dekes For Days

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There is a thought that this was done as a way to suppress their points which would lower their next contracts. Only Babcock and Lou would know if that’s true but it wouldn’t surprise me. Didn’t work anyway.
I mean, it probably did work to some extent, but what it also accomplished was sabotaging our team during our ELC advantage years.
 

RogerR

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I mean, it probably did work to some extent, but what it also accomplished was sabotaging our team during our ELC advantage years.
I dunno, it seems MItch and his side were pissed off. The rookie bonuses thing was dumb by Lou.
 

ACC1224

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The issue is by year 3 in the playoffs (Year 4 with Babcock) it should have been. That 2nd Boston series was so winnable. MIke Babcock just got destroyed by Cassidy. Even their players were stunned Matthews and Marner didn't play more. And the obsession with "Line-matching" lets the opponent's coach to dictate how much your players play
No argument there
 

Dekes For Days

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I dunno, it seems MItch and his side were pissed off. The rookie bonuses thing was dumb by Lou.
I mean, yeah, it also didn't help the resentment and frustration that they were already building up within our best players. The point is that regardless of if there was any positive impact for their contracts, that's never worth the cost of intentionally sabotaging a competitive team for years.
 

Menzinger

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I am confidant that their agents were very aggressive in their arguments about how much less usage they get compared to their peers., thus affecting their production. Matthews was still not top 60 in avg TOI among NHL forwards in year 3. It was crazy. How does this help the team? His production has soared under Keefe because of how much more usage he's getting.

It was definitely an issue. I mean Matthews didn't even start out on the 1st pp unit.

Regardless of what the the teams motivation was (be it development or contract reasoning), theres no way those agents forgot about it when it came down to negotiate
 
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Notsince67

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sorry to hear that, but what he does off ice has nothing to do with how his play on ice should be judged.

So he held out for the most money he could get, so does every other player in the league, the union and the agents demand it, it's really that simple. Last year Mitch put up 1.14 PPG which included the perceived slow start of 16 points in the 14 oct games or maybe it was the 2 points in 4 November games when he was out with injury, either way he finished in the top 20 and somehow that's considered disappointing. I'm truly sorry but I respectfully disagree

of all the Leafs that played way below their individual levels against Columbus, Mitch was the only one who took any ownership of his own liability and responsibilities on the ice, every other guy on that team came out with the same dumb platitudes "yeah y'know we have to play better as a team" "we didn't do enough for Freddie" etal

He stood up and took all the BS LeaFland could dish out, having someone shoulder blame and not passing the buck should be admired and not derided
All your points are correct but it leaves one thing out.
This is a fan site. People can't be faulted for liking their players (and that includes Willy). Rightly or wrongly people will defend or criticize players. The despicable nature of the trolling present with respect to Marner was off the charts.
The "ok Paul" etc was smarmy and meant to create conflict. At the end of the day, "eating crow" for being wrong is all good and fine but those who were wrong and were complete a-holes about it, think that all is well. They did more to fuel the mainboard ammunition than any outside known influence.
A bit of introspection might be in order for those who like to create lynch mobs. Some people won't join and many will remember how not-credible you were when you decided to double down on your incorrect analysis with personal attacks.
 
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Notsince67

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I dunno, it seems MItch and his side were pissed off. The rookie bonuses thing was dumb by Lou.
Pissed off might be a bit harsh though it most certainly affected a desire to sacrifice monetarily when there was no reason to squeeze him monetarily early in his career. The bonuses were performance based and it was peanuts to the organization.
 
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DarkKnight

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Pissed off might be a bit harsh though it most certainly affected a desire to sacrifice monetarily when there was no reason to squeeze him monetarily early in his career. The bonuses were performance based and it was peanuts to the organization.
His contract doesn’t even look that bad relative to Matthews. Auston makes more, Mitch gave up an extra year to UFA, when you contrast the two this year it looks fine. Matthews a touch ahead, but Marner sure isn’t far back at all, dollars to dollars, comparable deals.
 
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OpenNetSniper

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Still want him to develop a shot...even though it has improved.

If he adds that to his arsenal, oh man....look out!
 

93LEAFS

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My goodness people are overly defensive.

If you care to listen to my reasoning, and not just immediately dismiss people who don't 100% agree with you, then read on.

Marner struggled to score last year, and he was forcing a lot of passes. That doesn't mean he was incapable of putting up points, or being effective, because he is still one of the best playmakers out there... But Tavares was absolutely not the one who was running cold on that line.

As for not being able to carry a line, I think he needs a really good finisher to reach anywhere close to his peak performance. I think if you don't give him that guy, he is nowhere near as effective as what he is right now playing with Matthews, or playing with Tavares last year. For example, if you gave Matthews a couple of line mates like Kerfoot and Hyman, I think he would still find a way to rack up points. I think Tavares would be capable of doing that as well (when he is not on a cold streak obviously). I am not as confident in saying that Marner, or Nylander, could do that. That doesn't mean they don't make Matthews and Tavares significantly better than Kerfoot, or they can't still be very effective and productive players. That is why they are worth their money (or at least the vast majority of it). But true line drivers need to be able to do everything and I don't think Marner has enough of a shot to be able to do everything. I don't think there are many wingers in general who are capable of being line drivers all on their own, and it is not a reflection of ability or skill as much as a player profile.

If you don't like my opinion, that is fine. I definitely think comparing it to "garbage" or "convincing people that the earth is flat" is wildly outlandish and extremely reckless.
Explain how he was so effective with Kadri down the back half of 2017/18? It seems he makes Tavares or Matthews significantly better than Nylander. Not just Kerfoot.

He produces at a rate comparable to Kessel as an 19 year old with JVR and Bozak too, and Kessel clearly drove that line.
 
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93LEAFS

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I dunno, it seems MItch and his side were pissed off. The rookie bonuses thing was dumb by Lou.
That wasn't just Lou. That was primarily Pridham and Shanahan. Lou didn't come here until mid-July, by that point all 3 players drafted ahead of Marner had signed. And, if Leafs offered him a deal with bonus's they wouldn't have retracted it post-Lou arriving.
 

wingman75

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Did anyone else catch Mitch's post game interview last night? I found the words he used to be interesting; he spoke a lot about team, and supporting each other etc. Personally, I felt they were a direct shot at Babcock... maybe I am reading something into it, but he put a lot of emphasis on how much everyone supports each other. It was pointed.
 
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