'He Wasn't Sure': William Nylander Addresses Mitch Marner's Maple Leafs Exit

Conversations During and After the Season

Nylander expanded on what happened behind the scenes and explained that he had asked Marner about his future at two separate points during his final season with the Maple Leafs.

“I actually asked him during the season, and he said he was concentrating on Toronto,” Nylander said. “I didn’t want to press him on that and let him be because it was obviously on his mind, but his play was focused on helping us. Then I asked him after the season, and he wasn’t sure.”

In fairness, Marner looked to be truly focused on making the most of his time with Toronto as he produced one of the best regular seasons of his career with 102 points, including 75 assists.

Mitch Marner’s Departure Following Another Postseason Collapse

The Maple Leafs exited the playoffs in the second round, losing to the eventual back-to-back champions, the Florida Panthers.

Marner recorded 13 points in 13 postseason games but again faced heavy criticism for limited scoring in the playoffs, which has been the case throughout his career compared to his impressive regular-season numbers.

Toronto moved quickly after the elimination, finalizing a sign-and-trade that sent Marner to Vegas on an eight-year, $96 million deal , with Nicolas Roy coming back to Toronto on the verge of the start of free agency.

“It’s tough seeing him go, but I’m so happy for him and his family,” Nylander said. “He got to pick where he went, so, in that aspect, I’m happy for him. We’re going to miss him a lot, but that’s just the business of the sport. That’s the way it is. So we’ve got to regroup as a team and figure out a way to keep winning games.”

The Golden Knights host the Maple Leafs on Jan. 15 before Marner makes his return to Toronto on Jan. 23 at Scotiabank Arena.