Last night was a huge night for John Tavares and without a doubt one of the highlights was having his father there and capturing his reaction. It was a special moment and one that isn’t tarnished in anyway. That said, the camera did also capture another reaction or lack thereof.
Yep. That’s Paul Marner, Mitch’s Dad with the cold reaction to the Leafs tying the game with seconds left and John Tavares recording his 1000th point in the process. Honestly this would have been a bizarre and underwhelming reaction if the Leafs scored and ended up losing by six.
This isn’t the first time Paul Marner has entered the conversation in a questionable way, his hockey dad antics predate Mitch Marner’s time with the Maple Leafs and even the London Knights. Paul Marner’s issues with watching his son play hockey are so infamous he got the CBC Passionate Eye treatment:
So here we are yet again, and here is a small sample of how Maple Leafs fans reacted to him this time:
Yeah, pretty much. I mean hating him seems pretty strong when fans don’t know the full story about him, but a healthy dislike of Paul Marner certainly seems consistent.
I’m sure that Paul appreciates a bit of the benefit of doubt when it comes to his reaction. I’m trying to imagine how crazy the arena would have gone if the refs called back Tavares’ 1,000th point.
Even if you’re not excited about the game, why did you come along on the trip if you aren’t going to have fun with the other dads or support your kid?
At the end of the day, this is a moment for the Tavares family, and it shouldn’t be about the Marners. Follow the Maple Leafs twitter account’s lead and crop Paul Marner out of the memory.
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