Mitch Marner will be the top free agent available on July 1 and will have several teams interested in him.
Marner completed his six-year, $65.41 million deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs and will be in line for a massive payday. He could get $100 million+, but one prediction has him falling short of that. The website PuckGM allows users to create trades and signings, and one user predicts Marner will sign a seven-year, $92.5 million deal with the Montreal Canadiens.
Marner would earn $13.25 million per season, which is just under the $14-15 million per season that he likely is after. It would be a massive deal as Marner would bolster the Canadiens’ roster. Montreal is a clear rival of the Maple Leafs, which would add some intrigue to the deal.
Marner would project to play on the Canadiens’ top line with Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki. Or, the Canadiens could opt to spread out the offense and put him on the second line, but he would add some much-needed offense to the Habs roster.
Marner recorded 27 goals and 75 assists for 102 points in 81 games this season with the Maple Leafs.
Insider Believes Marner Could Sign for $100 Million
Marner is the best player in free agency and will be in line to get a massive deal.
The star winger could become the NHL’s highest-paid player in the NHL. But, insider Frank Seravalli of DailyFaceoff believes Marner could sign for $14 million per season.
“Coupling the difficulty in acquiring true difference makers with the rapidly rising salary cap, though, and it’s not difficult to envision a world where Marner earns closer to a $14 million AAV if he makes it to market,” Seravalli wrote.
However, after Marner had another lackluster playoff performance, whether or not that will impact his contract is to be seen.
But, it does seem likely Marner will get over $13 million per season.
Insider Expects Marner to Leave Maple Leafs in Free Agency
The Maple Leafs will likely lose Marner, one of the best forwards in the NHL, for nothing.
NHL insider Chris Johnston believes Marner will leave the Maple Leafs in free agency. He expects Marner to want to go elsewhere.
“The Leafs have lost control of this situation as an organization because Mitch Marner can be a free agent,” Johnston said on The Chris Johnston Show. “It does appear to me that he’s going to walk away in free agency. So that’s obviously just a massive hole in your lineup. Whatever you think of Mitch Marner, it’s hard to paint potentially losing a 102-point scorer for nothing as a positive. I realize that comes with more cap space to spend elsewhere. There aren’t very many Mitch Marner’s growing on trees, in fact, there’s only one and that’s why he’s going to chase this free agency, because he’s going to have some unique and lucrative opportunities for him.”
Although Johnston believes Marner will leave, the star forward says he hasn’t made any decision yet.
“In the next couple of weeks, I’ll sit down with my wife and we’ll start talking,” Marner said. “Trying to figure out what’s next.”
Marner was drafted fourth overall in the 2015 NHL Draft.
Marner Predicted to Leave Maple Leafs For Rival in Deal Just Short of $100 Million