The Toronto Maple Leafs made a splash at the NHL’s 2025 trade deadline Friday, pulling off two significant deals to improve the team. But according to a Sportsnet report, the Leafs could’ve made a blockbuster move by trading star right winger Mitch Marner to Carolina for star right winger Mikko Rantanen. The Leafs reportedly went to Marner, asking if he would waive his no-trade clause in a potential Rantanen deal, but Marner exercised his contractual right and chose to remain a Leaf.
However, when media spoke to Marner after Toronto’s 7-4 loss to Colorado Saturday night in Denver, Marner was evasive when it came to confirming or denying the Sportsnet report. But he did admit the possibility of changing teams crossed his mind.
“I had a feeling that maybe something might happen,” Marner said Saturday regarding the trade deadline. “But, yeah, I’m here to play hockey with this (Leafs) team, like I said, and I’m focused with this team. And that’s what I can tell you.”
It would’ve been easy for Marner to come out to reporters and flatly deny the report of a potential trade to the ‘Canes. But that’s not what happened. And that may say something about how much time is left on Marner’s Leafs career.
Now, we’re not here to tell you Marner will definitely be an ex-Leaf when his contract ends this summer and he becomes a UFA. He’s said repeatedly that his goal is to stay with his hometown Toronto team, and we’re inclined to believe him. But if the Sportsnet report is accurate, the emotional impact of Marner knowing the Buds were at least considering trading him could be profound, and affect his desire to stay a Leaf beyond this season.
The bottom line for Marner and his agent, Darren Ferris, will almost assuredly come down to money, as we’re sure Marner and the Leafs will want a full eight-year term for the new contract. Thus, if Marner is looking for an average annual payday of more than superstar Auston Matthews’ $13.25-million salary, it’s probably going to mean the end of Marner’s Leafs career. Rantanen signed a new contract with the Dallas Stars for $12-million per season, and while the tax-free state of Texas gives Rantanen more money than Marner would get in Toronto if he signed a similar deal, Marner could reasonably ask for more money than Rantanen got. But ultimately, the Leafs need a cap structure that keeps Matthews at the top of the pay pyramid, so Marner has to temper his expectations.
And as we’ve said before, the biggest issue for the Leafs as they look at the future with Marner should be the question of giving him another no-trade clause in his contract. Even getting him to agree to a partial no-trade clause that allows him to veto a trade to, say, half the league’s 31 other teams would be a necessary step for Toronto management if it wants more roster flexibility than it currently has. Toronto has too many players with no-trade or no-move clauses, and that needs to change, and change right away.
In any case, Marner’s aura of exhaustion after Saturday’s game was not a positive harbinger of what’s to come for him and his time as a Leaf. NHL players value loyalty from their employer. And if Toronto brass has crossed a line in Marner’s mind by coming to him and saying they were at least considering trading him, that may be the final straw that convinces him not to sign an extension before the season ends and that he should test the free agent market and thoroughly explore playing for another franchise.
The business of the game may drive some fans to ruin, but it’s a reality NHLers cannot avoid. Marner sounded Saturday like someone who was not enthralled with his current contractual situation – and as a result, Leafs fans need to brace themselves for a possible future that doesn’t include Marner in Blue and White.
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