Darren Dreger reveals update on Mitch Marner's contract talks

Toronto Maple Leafs right wing Mitch Marner. Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Darren Dreger reveals major update on Mitch Marner's contract negotiations

Originally posted on Hockey Patrol | By Austin Kelly | Last updated Dec 20, 2024 11:28 PM ET

TSN's Darren Dreger has revealed an update on the status of Toronto Maple Leafs winger Mitch Marner's pending free agency.

The recent report from Dreger indicates that the Leafs have a plan for whether or not Marner will be back, but they aren't rushing to force a deal early in the season.

Dreger has reported that while the Leafs front office wishes to re-sign Mitch Marner, at this time, the team isn't focusing too much on the numbers size of locking up Marner.

According to Darren Dreger, the Leafs are letting Marner play out the rest of 2024 and focusing toward his on-ice performance, having 2025 be the year the team begins getting into serious discussion on Marner's future.

Marner has 10 goals and a team-leading 32 assists and 42 points in 32 games played for the Toronto Maple Leafs this season.

Leafs not focused on urgency in Mitch Marner extension discussions

The Toronto Maple Leafs seem to not be overly focused on getting a deal signed with Mitch Marner as soon as possible.

The Leafs know they have Marner for the rest of the season, and the probability of a trade is incredibly low.

If the Leafs were to move on from Marner, it wouldn't happen this season as they're a contending team, leaving them able to see the season out, or at least wait until they're in a safe place in the standings to pull the trigger on an extension.

Agent Darren Ferris has not been an easy customer for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the past, as evident in the difficult extension talks last time back in 2019, which ended when Marner signed a six-year contract extension by the time Toronto started training camp.

Toronto also has a second priority in the re-signing of John Tavares, looking likely that the former captain will take a deal in the near future.

If Tavares signs an extension soon, and for a team-friendly deal, it then positions the Toronto Maple Leafs to go full throttle in their focus on Marner's future.

This article first appeared on Hockey Patrol and was syndicated with permission.

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