The Toronto Maple Leafs lost in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs to the Florida Panthers. It marked the end of the Core Four era, with Mitch Marner leaving the Maple Leafs for the Vegas Golden Knights. Marner spoke about safety concerns after the Leafs' most recent loss. Toronto's general manager, Brad Treliving, was asked about those concerns by Eric Engels of Sportsnet.
“In our business, your No. 1 priority is looking after your players, and I think we do a really good job of it,” Treliving said at the GM Meetings. “I don’t have any concerns that we don’t do everything humanly possible to make sure that they’re looked after, but in today’s world, you never take anything not seriously.
The Maple Leafs GM finished, “It’s unfortunate, but we always take every precaution necessary to make sure our guys are looked after.”
The Maple Leafs have an incredibly passionate fanbase and have not been to the Stanley Cup Final since 1967. That passion turns into frustration when they lose in the postseason. And for Marner, with his time in Toronto ending, it was particularly pointed this year.
The Golden Knights provide a different opportunity for Marner, but they still have Stanley Cup aspirations. While the fans do not have the reputation the Maple Leafs fans have, the team is cutthroat. They have shipped out most of the original misfits for improvements and have barely drafted in the first round in franchise history.
While playing for the Maple Leafs was a lifelong dream for the Ontario native, his experience was not what he dreamed of. He now heads to the Western Conference with a loaded Golden Knights team ready to win a Stanley Cup. Marner was drafted by the Maple Leafs, but he hopes his career is remembered for his time in Vegas.
