Maple Leafs star Mitch Marner needs a new contract at the end of this year. And Adam Proteau says management should persuade him to take a team-friendly extension.
With reports the NHL salary cap could go up by as much as $9 million next season, the cap-strapped Toronto Maple Leafs suddenly have all the space in the world to re-sign Mitch Marner to a long-term contract.
But is breaking the bank for the star right winger the right move? Or should the Leafs use the extra dollars on the next contracts of Matthew Knies and John Tavares?
It will be the biggest question facing GM Brad Treliving next summer. And there is no easy answer.
While the Leafs certainly have the cap space to pay Marner somewhere close to the $13.25 million that superstar Auston Matthews is making this season, the team probably should wait and see what happens in these playoffs. After all, another first-round collapse will have even the biggest Marner supporter suggesting he needs to go. The problem is that if you wait and decide that you want to sign him, you may end up paying even more for his services — or worse, losing him to the open market.
With that in mind, if you could get Marner to take a $12-million cap hit right now, you’d have to do that, right?
At that number, it would be a raise of about $1.1 million on the $10.9-million salary Marner is currently making (and would be $500,000 more per season than fellow Leafs star William Nylander got in his recent contract extension).
No question, Marner is proving he's worth it.
With Matthews out with an injury, Marner’s production has been better than ever this year. He presently has 18 goals and 24 points in 19 games, putting him on a pace to produce 77 assists and 103 points. Both numbers would be new career highs for the 27-year-old, so it’s understandable that Marner would aim to get a decent raise in his next contract.
But Leafs fans know as well as anyone that every extra dollar spent on a Marner extension is a dollar less Toronto can spend on the rest of the roster.
From our perspective, the key in any new Marner contract would be whether Leafs management can get Marner to sign a deal that does not include a no-movement clause. That would at least give the Leafs an exit strategy if things don’t work out in the playoffs (yet again).
The other complicating factor in all of this is that Marner is not the only player that Toronto needs to re-sign.
John Tavares, who has nine goals and 17 points since removing the 'C' from his jersey, also becomes a UFA this summer. The 34-year-old will definitely be taking a significant haircut from his current $11-million salary. If the Leafs can limit Marner’s pay bump to $1 million or so, the Leafs can then spend more of that money on not only Tavares but also RFA Matthew Knies, whose price tag keeps going up with every game he plays.
It’s all a delicate balance for Treliving, who will no doubt attempt to convince Marner to take something close to a hometown discount. And if Treliving can show Marner how the team could be more competitive if he accepts less money, don't be surprised Marner becomes the fan favorite he once was. However, if Marner swings for the fences financially, Leafs fans are going to interpret it as a selfish move and judge Marner’s on-ice results accordingly.
Either way, Marner's negotiations with the Leafs will be high drama for the foreseeable future.
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