May 18, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner (16) reacts after losing the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs to the Florida Panthers at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

The Toronto Maple Leafs have found themselves in a very similar position, with its recent 6-1 blowout loss to the Florida Panthers: leaving the playoffs empty handed.

For a team who holds the longest championship drought, dating all the way back to the 60's, the Leafs find themselves still struggling to make the Eastern conference finals, with its last visit in 2001

To make matters worse, the Leafs' 6-1 loss happened not only during a Game 7, who have lost seven straight game 7s now, but the nature of getting being blown out the way it did on home ice made it all the more painful.

But while the disappointment of that game 7 is sure to sting for a while, teams are already planning on how to steal Toronto's Mitch Marner away in free agency.

Even before Toronto's playoff loss, there was talk of this being Marner's last year and it sure to only grow now that the offseason is here.

So the next question all of the NHL will be asking is where will he end up. However, for teams like Utah Mammoth, the question changes to: Is Mitch Marner worth it?

Utah Mammoth certainly offers a change of both scenery and expectations for Marner, with both being much more low key than the spotlight the Toronto Maple Leafs have .

It would be especially desirable for him to be in a much better environment, especially as his reported refusal to waive his no-movement clause for a Mikko Rantanen trade will only continue to draw attention while Rantanen excels in the playoffs.

So certainly a rising Utah team in a brand new market could appeal to Marner if he chooses to leave.

Yes, adding Marner is bringing in talent to a young team that was already near playoff contention in Utah's case. But at the same time, Marner will be highly sought out across the league, so Utah will need to decide soon if it likes Marner's fit with the team.

As Utah Mammoth General Manger Bill Armstrong said at the end of season press conference, “A lot of teams that you saw that ‘won the summer’ didn’t win the winter.”

Utah Mammoth Potential Free Agent Targets: Mitch Marner <br>Welcome to a new series, where I'll be taking a look at some of the biggest name players who are pending UFAs and determine if the Utah Mammoth should pursue them or not.

“Once the money’s gone, it’s usually locked in for a long term and next year, we’re talking about, ‘How do we get rid of some of that money?’ So, it’s really a tricky one, where you have to very, very cautiously spend your money,” Armstrong said.

After all, with Utah being as close as it was to the playoffs and expected to continue building team chemistry and gain much needed experience, perhaps locking into a expensive contract with Marner could be trying to rush the process if Utah isn't sold on Marner's fit with the team.

And considering the team was not only transtioning to its new life in Utah, as reflected in a poor home record in the first half of the season, the team was also largely unhealthy on defense a majority of the season most notably with John Marino and Sean Durzi missing significant time.

"A couple years ago, we needed players no matter what,” André Tourigny said in the end of season press conference. “If you’re a good player, we (were) happy to have you. Now, we’re looking for specific areas of our game to be better.”

Nov 24, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner (16) stickhandles the puck past Utah Hockey Club forward Barrett Hayton (27) in the third period at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Add in a healthy defense to Utah and better chemistry between a unit that has only played one season together , Utah could realistically make a jump in its record even if it didn't make any big changes.

But if Utah is simply aiming to be a wild card team—which would require the club to improve from 89 points to at least 96 to match what St. Louis needed to claim the final Western Wild Card spot—it could hold off on making major moves in free agency and instead commit to watching its young stars continue to develop.

However, Utah finds itself in a unique position to aim higher, especially if it can find ways to grow now, such as acquiring a player of Marner's caliber."

The lack of playoff production should raise some concern, but depending on the Mammoth’s mindset, simply bringing in a 100-point player and an all-star like Marner to help elevate the team to playoff contention might be all it needs.

Pairing Utah's Clayton Keller with another playmaker would immediately improve the offense.

And with the next step for Utah's Mammoth's growth being to simply have playoff experience, bringing in Marner now would certainly increase the chances of that happening.

While Leafs fans will understandably point to the frustration of the past nine years with little playoff success, a team like Utah would simply be happy to reach the postseason and experience that level of consistency.

And just because Marner's performance along with the rest of Toronto's top athletes in Florida Panthers series didn't meet the teams standards, doesn't mean that he can't change the script on a new team.

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It certainly wouldn't be the goal for players like Keller to be content with being average. Even without any playoff experience, he would surely want to aim for the Stanley Cup.

Utah should certainly look to add talent since it has the cap space, but if Marner isn’t the fit Armstrong wants, the team still has other options.

Though people want the Utah Mammoth to make a splash signing, the team’s unique position with the No. 4 pick could make Utah buyers in the draft for a second consecutive year.

Ultimately, Utah won't have full control where Marner ends even if the team likes him, so Utah will need to have alternate plans if it can't get Marner.

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