Ex-Leaf immediately jumps to Mitch Marner's defense

The Toronto Maple Leafs have already made two significant leadership changes within the franchise following their latest playoff disappointment at the hands of the Boston Bruins, firing head coach Sheldon Keefe and hiring Craig Berube in his place while also naming Auston Matthews the 26th captain in team history. 

But one player who continues to feel criticism from fans and analysts alike while also being heavily involved in trade rumors is forward Mitch Marner, who took plenty of heat following a subpar performance in Toronto's seven-game Round 1 postseason loss to the rival Boston Bruins. 

But coming to the defense of Marner is his former teammate, defenseman Zach Bogosian. Currently with the Minnesota Wild, Bogosian played with Marner during the 2020-21 season and is pushing back on those who try and blame him for Toronto's lack of postseason success. 

“I’m going to bat for Mitchy," he said while making an appearance on The Cam and Strick Podcast earlier in the week. "I don’t understand why everyone is always up his a** about everything. I mean, that kid is such a good kid, he’s a good leader, and he’s always trying to take care of everyone around the locker room. He’s obviously a great player, but it’s almost like he’s the scapegoat for everyone, like a lightning rod for everyone to say, ‘this is the problem.’”

“I’ve played with a lot of guys and he is as good of a person and a teammate as I’ve ever seen. A lot of people give him sh** about this and that and we haven’t done this and it’s like, well, he’s trying everything,” Bogosian explained. “He’s such a good person, he’s a good leader like I said.”

“I’ll have his back every fu***** day of the week, man,” he reiterated. “That kid, he is the best. Anyone that has something to say about him, you can f*** off because he’s such a good person, they don’t know. Anybody that doesn’t know somebody, and decides they are going to rip him, get to know the person first.”

Bogosian also addressed those who feel that too much money is tied up in Toronto's "Core 4" of Marner, Matthews, John Tavares and William Nylander, saying that they "deserve" the top dollars they're earning. 

“I know that Toronto gets a lot of grief about how much they’re paying the big boys and taking up a chunk of the salary cap,” Bogosian said. “But those guys deserve it, man. They’re all really good.”

Recommended articles:

• Wild GM Bill Guerin announces new contract extension
• Wild makes second trade of the day!
• Frank Corrado calls for risky move from Maple Leafs.
• Zach Bogosian drops the gloves with his 3 year old son
• Bogosian goes after Hartman after slewfoot on Colton.