It took a while, but the Vegas Golden Knights finally got their man, trading for Mitch Marner. The former Toronto Maple Leafs star was one of the top pending unrestricted free agents in this year’s class, alongside the Florida Panthers trio of Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand, and Aaron Ekblad.

While Bennett, Marchand, and Ekblad all decided to stay put in sunny, no-state-tax Florida, Marner decided to set his sights on Sin City, and Vegas promptly acquiesced, handing him an eight-year, $96 million payday.

The trade was essentially a player-for-player trade with forward Nicolas Roy heading to Toronto.

New Golden Knights Star Mitch Marner Pens Heartfelt Letter for Leafs Fans

In an Instagram post, Marner wrote words of gratitude to the Maple Leafs organization, but he also addressed that this wasn’t the way he envisaged his stay in Toronto would end.

“Leaving isn’t easy. This city is where I grew up, where I fell in love with hockey, where I’ve had the incredible honour of living out my childhood dream,” Marner wrote.

“When I was drafted, all I wanted was to help bring a Stanley Cup to Toronto. That was always the goal, and I came up short. I know how much this team means to this city, and I know the expectations that come with wearing this jersey. I gave everything I had, but in the end, it wasn’t enough. That’s hard to admit, because I wanted it so badly, for all of us,” he added.

Mitch Marner says goodbye to Toronto on IG. He says all he wanted to do was bring a Stanley Cup to his hometown: “I gave everything I had, but in the end it wasn’t enough. That’s hard to admit because I wanted it so badly for all of us.” pic.twitter.com/6vhE5BPKSY

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) July 1, 2025

Marner’s era in Toronto officially ends with the 28-year-old forward registering a career-high 102 points (27 goals, 75 assists) in 81 regular-season games this past season and 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) in 13 Stanley Cup playoff games. In the Marner era, the Leafs reached the Stanley Cup playoffs in nine straight seasons but managed just two series wins.

For his part, Leafs GM Brad Treliving had already made it clear he expected Marner to hit the open market: “Unless there is significant change here, I would anticipate he’s going to hit the market,” Treliving told the media.

In any case, the Leafs did manage to get a halfway decent return for a player of Marner’s caliber.