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Maple Leafs GM Makes 'Emotional' Admission About Discussion With Mitch Marner

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated May 30, 2025 7:08 AM ET

The Toronto Maple Leafs are once again heading into a summer of difficult decisions, and general manager Brad Treliving took center stage on Thursday to share a few more nuggets about what's next.

Following a second-round exit at the hands of the Florida Panthers, Toronto’s front office faces the prospect of reshaping a Core Four that has failed to deliver deep playoff runs across nearly a decade.

While Treliving made his commitment to bring young forward Matthew Knies back clear, and praised the impact of coach Craig Berube, his comments about his two top-tier pending free agents—Mitch Marner and John Tavares—suggest changes might be coming.

As things stand, without contract-extension agreements in place, Marner and Tavares are heading into unrestricted free agency on July 1.

LIVE | Brad Treliving Press Conference | May 29, 2025 https://t.co/dgsNjVsgJz
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) May 29, 2025

Treliving declined to confirm whether the Leafs intend to offer a new deal to Marner, who led the team with 102 points in 2024–25.

“I think Mitch is a tremendous player. I think he’s a star,” Treliving said. “We’re in that process right now.”

Treliving explained that discussions with Marner are still in an early phase because of the "emotional" nature of the situation, with Toronto suffering another playoff collapse.

“Mitch and I had a discussion. It’s emotional right now,” Treliving said. “You’ve got to get composed, you’ve got to think clearly and then start going through that process.”

Treliving, however, acknowledged that the decision will not be one-sided, hinting at a need for both sides to make some concessions to reach an agreement.

“Mitch has a say in this as well,” Treliving said. “This isn’t the world according to Brad.”

At his own end-of-season availability, Marner avoided making any commitment about his potential return to Toronto.

“Always loved my time here. I loved being here,” Marner said. “I haven’t processed anything yet. It’s still so fresh.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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