Insider Makes ‘Educated Guess’ on Mitch Marner Trade to Blackhawks

Getty Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner

With the Chicago Blackhawks not even close to sniffing the postseason and the Toronto Maple Leafs losing to the Boston Bruins in the first round, both franchises have already transitioned into offseason mode.

On Tuesday, May 21, The Athletic’s Scott Powers discussed a potential trade between both franchises involving Blackhawks defenseman Seth Jones and Leafs forward Mitch Marner.

It is an interesting follow-up to the idea presented on May 7 by Bleacher Report’s Joe Yerdon, who named Chicago a “potential landing spot” for Marner if he waves his no-move clause (NMC).

The difference, however, is that Powers covers the Blackhawks as a beat reporter with insider information, making his “educated guess,” as he wrote, a revealing one.

To the “Seth Jones for Mitch Marner—who says no?” question submitted by a reader, Powers answered, “My educated guess is no,” a conclusion he reached after explaining his thought process.

The Blackhawks Might Not Want to Move Seth Jones

Powers broke down his opinion on the Marner-for-Jones proposal while answering the question presented by his reader in a May 21 mailbag post.

The first thing he addressed was the interest (or lack of it) of the Blackhawks in moving franchise cornerstone Seth Jones in a trade.

“Would the Blackhawks trade Seth Jones? He’s not untouchable,” Powers wrote. “Connor Bedard and maybe Alex Vlasic are probably the only untouchables at this point. That said, Jones serves multiple purposes for the Blackhawks.”

Powers thinks Jones is a valuable defenseman that gives the rebuilding Blackhawks a competitive edge. Even though he’s still 29 years old, Jones is already an NHL veteran after getting drafted in 2013 and debuting that season.

“He’s a more than capable NHL defenseman and helps the Blackhawks as a team be competitive,” Powers wrote. “Getting rid of Jones would create a hole in the roster that isn’t simple to fill.

“There aren’t many free agents who can step into that role, and probably fewer who would be interested in signing with the Blackhawks on a short-term deal.”

Powers also thinks that for a team like the Blackhawks, which is trying to create a roster to compete for the Stanley Cup in the future, having someone boasting a huge salary is important to reach the floor. On top of that, Jones provides quality play contrary to what low-salaried players would give Chicago.

“Jones’ cap hit assists the Blackhawks to the cap floor. Again, the Blackhawks shouldn’t have an issue with the cap floor in the future as they have to pay their young players on their second and third contracts, but Jones’ contract is helpful now.”

Not the Right Time for Chicago to Land Leafs’ Mitch Marner

Moving to the other part of the equation, landing Mitch Marner, Powers was blunt in assessing the potential fit of the current Leafs player in Chicago–or anywhere, for that matter.

“Would Mitch Marner fit in with the Blackhawks? Yeah, definitely,” Powers wrote. “Marner is a high-level offensive player. (…) He has a lot of the attributes the Blackhawks are looking for in their future wingers.”

While Marner could definitely help any NHL team, the Blackhawks might not be in a position to chase that type of player at this point in their rebuilding process.

Chicago is coming off a 52-point season. The Blackhawks have missed the playoffs for four consecutive seasons and for the sixth time in the last seven years. They have the No. 2 pick in the upcoming 2024 NHL draft.

Marner is entering the final year of his contract, which runs out at the end of June 2025, thus requiring an extension.

“As much as Marner would help the Blackhawks in the short term, it’d be a question of whether they want to invest in him in the long term,” Powers wrote. “He’d undoubtedly want an eight-year contract extension.

“Considering he’s making $10.9 million now, the assumption is he’d want a salary increase in his next deal. I can’t imagine the Blackhawks would commit $10 million-plus to a player for that long and into their mid-30s, especially this early in the rebuild.”