This weekend’s sighting of former Toronto Maple Leafs player Mitch Marner with first-overall pick Gavin McKenna is enough to give Leafs fans the heebie-jeebies.
The immediate knee-jerk reaction is seeing the much-maligned “god” turned to villain hanging out with the pristine top prospect.
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That’s not a good look for McKenna. Regardless, it seems that McKenna is now part of the club where the posh NHLers spend their summer.
And while there might be a positive angle to this story, the fact of the matter is that seeing Marner and McKenna should have Maple Leafs fans reaching for their antacids.
Yes, Marner is a good player. And if he can offer McKenna some meaningful mentorship, well, that’s all good. However, the problem lies in the optics of the situation. Sure, the 18-year-old can’t tell an NHL veteran to take a hike. He just smiled for the picture and that was that. At the end of the day, the players had a photo op with some local fans. And that’s what it’s all about. Players owe their positions to fans. It’s the fans that make pro athletes what they are, physical and mental abilities notwithstanding.
Marner Still a Villain in Toronto
Last season did little to help Maple Leafs fans forget about Mitch Marner. If anything, the wounds of the poorly-handled exit remain fresh all around.
Marner remains a hot-button topic in Toronto, and, well, taking pictures like this alongside Gavin McKenna won’t help the former Leafs fourth-overall pick ingratiate himself with Leafs fans anytime soon.
As for McKenna, he gets a pass for now. Being sighted alongside a persona non grata doesn’t help, but it’s not nearly enough to lump him in the same category as Marner. While most Maple Leafs fans would have rather seen McKenna run away in the opposite direction, one has to think that the opportunity to meet some of the best players in the league at the moment is appealing to a rookie.
Still, it’s just bizarre to see Marner and McKenna together. It’s like opposites somehow attracting one another in front of fans’ eyes.
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Maple Leafs Fans Hoping McKenna Can Erase the Bad Memories
Ultimately, Maple Leafs fans are hoping that Gavin McKenna can do his part to erase the bad memories. Those would be the memories of all those Game 7 no-shows, of the early playoff exits, and the disappearance acts at crunch time.
The fact of the matter is that McKenna has a unique opportunity to write a new chapter in the Maple Leafs’ long history book. He’ll get his chance starting this season. And if he’s any good, Toronto fans will be delighted with what they see.
Yes, expectations should be tempered. But there’s no question that Gavin McKenna has the chance to do what Marner never did.
In a way, the picture is like seeing the past fade into the present and future. Marner might as well live in a distant galaxy. Everything that matters now is the hope that McKenna offers the long-suffering Maple Leafs fanbase.
Maple Leafs Fans Should Get Heebie-Jeebies after Marner-McKenna Sighting