The Maple Leafs cannot bring back Mitch Marner this summer. They certainly cannot pay him the $13-million he reportedly is looking for as a UFA. The writing is on the wall. Or rather, the spilled beer is on the ice. Along with jerseys, cups and anything else Toronto Maple Leafs' fans were willing to toss at his direction in a 6-1 loss in Game 7 against the Florida Panthers. Marner, who was booed by his home crowd each and every time he touched the puck in the final minutes of another blowout loss, might not have quit on the team. But it’s clear that the fans have quit on him. They don’t want him back. At this point, they don’t want any of the players back. Which should make GM Brad Treliving’s job easy. Treliving was brought to Toronto [http://thn.com/toronto] to do what Kyle Dubas could not do before him. He has to break up the core — even if that means letting Marner walk for nothing. [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/the-toronto-maple-leafs-stanley-cup-window-has-slammed-shut] For Treliving, it’s an obvious choice. And yet, it’s also a difficult one. Losing Marner, who led the team with 102 points in the regular season and who had another 13 points in 13 games in the playoffs, would undeniably make this team worse. It would. Especially if the team is unable to sign Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand [http://thn.com/florida] or any of the other pending UFAs this summer. That’s not a reason to keep Marner. Not when he went the final six games against the Panthers without a goal. Not after he had another no-show in yet another Game 7 (for those counting at home, he now has no goals and just two assists in five career Game 7 losses). Not after the fans effectively turned on him in a way that can't be walked back. No, he has to be gone. And had Marner agreed to waive his no-trade clause earlier this year and accepted a trade to Carolina [http://thn.com/carolina] in exchange for Mikko Rantanen, he probably would have been gone already. Now, the challenge is doing it without getting anything back in return, except for freed up salary cap space. But it’s not the only so-called tough decision facing Treliving in what looks like it will be the biggest summer in franchise history. The Maple Leafs Don't Deserve To Be 'Crucified,' Say Panthers' Marchand, Maurice [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/61181a9e-12de-421f-9f18-a2f3900f626d.webp] The Maple Leafs Don't Deserve To Be 'Crucified,' Say Panthers' Marchand, Maurice It was the same old story for the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7 against the Florida Panthers. <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/panthers-play-excellent-game-7-in-toronto-advance-to-conference-final">Florida dismantled Toronto in a 6-1 victory</a> to advance to the Eastern Conference final against the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/carolina-hurricanes">Carolina Hurricanes</a>. [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/the-maple-leafs-don-t-deserve-to-be-crucified-say-panthers-marchand-maurice] There’s also the decision to re-sign John Tavares, who made it clear that he’s willing to come back — even if it’s at a discounted rated. And the challenge of getting Matthew Knies to commit long term to an organization that is at a crossroads (remember: Auston Matthews’ current deal runs out in three years). And whether or not to buy out Morgan Rielly’s contract. There’s also this: does Treliving, who traded Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau when he was the Calgary Flames GM, want to be known as the guy who also said goodbye to Marner? Does he want to be the guy who effectively closed the Leafs’ championship window. Does he want to be the guy who blew up not one — but two championship-bound franchises? You don’t name schools for the GM who kills the Golden Goose. Instead, you vilify him. In other words, it’s a risk. One that will forever change Treliving’s Wikipedia bio. But that is why he why he was brought to Toronto — to make the hard, unpopular decisions. And yet, at this point, it’s not an unpopular opinion to suggest Marner needs to go. For Treliving, the unpopular decision would be to keep him and reward him for what was another disastrous end to an otherwise successful season. The Toronto Maple Leafs' Stanley Cup Window Has Slammed Shut [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/076aabcd-2869-4923-b10f-3bda1984d2ce.webp] The Toronto Maple Leafs' Stanley Cup Window Has Slammed Shut Any hope the Toronto Maple Leafs had of winning a Stanley Cup when Auston Matthews was drafted nine years ago went up in a cloud of apathy-filled smoke when the Maple Leafs lost Game 7 of their second-round series against the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/panthers-play-excellent-game-7-in-toronto-advance-to-conference-final">Florida Panthers</a> Sunday night. [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/the-toronto-maple-leafs-stanley-cup-window-has-slammed-shut]
