Photo credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Ottawa Senators fans chants ‘You need Marner’. To some, that may certainly be the case looking at the standings but it seems like with how the season is going overall – Maple Leafs fans have the last laugh.
Adding onto the humiliation suffered at the hands of the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs got to hear a lot of noise surrounding Mitch Marner, as the crowd decided to mock their heated rivals:
Toronto needs Marner? It sounds like he needs them just as much
Well, if the Maple Leafs had Marner they would certainly have had a better chance at defeating Ottawa considering how strong Marner’s season has been right?
Well looking at the standings, it really is not going well for Marner and the Golden Knights in the Pacific. Going 3-9-0 over their last 12 games, Vegas is in danger of missing the playoffs should another team get hot.
Marner has been as solid as ever with a point-per-game pace, as he has 69 points in 69 games but it’s a far cry from the 102-point masterclass he put on last season.
If he were on the Maple Leafs right now, he would be the team’s leading scorer. But when you factor in that Auston Matthews missed 22 games, and William Nylander has missed 17 then you start to wonder exactly how many points they’d have right now over Marner.
Marner has missed one game. It’s not like he’s lighting the lamp on fire and if he were to be in the Maple Leafs lineup still, their defensive and goaltending struggles are going to still be a huge factor but it seems like things aren’t as lucky in Vegas either.
Last year was just a perfect storm of great goaltending, a new system, and Marner leading the charge with some very solid supporting cast. You can’t compare the two.
Why Maple Leafs fans aren’t concerned about Marner anymore
As much as the Ottawa faithful think Toronto needs Marner, it looks like perhaps he may need them just as badly.
Which is why Maple Leafs fans are not too concerned with the extra noise. It’s Marner, they’ve moved on. It’s clear that the Marner chapter is written and done with, and right now there’s more pressing matters at hand.
First, you have to focus on what Auston Matthews is going to do and that starts with changing things. Toronto fans are less concerned with their inability to have Marner and more with who should be running things because if not; they could lose their captain.
Then comes the roster changes as fans want to see Morgan Rielly, Max Domi, Simon Benoit, Philippe Myers etc. all gone in order to bring in new faces and give Toronto that fighting chance once again.
But besides all of that, even taking a look at the standings you can see that for as powerful as Marner makes Vegas, it’s still about finding balance (and a little luck thrown in).
It doesn’t matter anymore whether or not the Maple Leafs need Marner, or if they are a better team with or without him – there is no ‘magic fix’.
It’s knowing that currently there are way bigger fish to fry, and the last thing to be concerned with right now is some petty jeers from rival fans.
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Maple Leafs fans get the last laugh as Senators’ mocking Mitch Marner chants are met with a harsh reality
Do you think Mitch Marner needs the Maple Leafs more than the Maple Leafs need him?