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Monster trade suggestion for Mitch Marner gets Leafs’ fans talking!
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Monster trade suggestion for Mitch Marner gets Leafs’ fans talking!

Would you pull the trigger?

Chris Gosselin

To trade Marner or not to trade Marner, that is the ongoing question in Toronto this summer. Winger Mitch Marner has been involved in trade rumours for months now, and while many insiders believe the forward will honour the last year of his contract with the Maple Leafs in 2024-25, others refuse to believe the Core Four will stay put in Toronto. One of them is Steve Dangle, who simply cannot phantom the Maple Leafs keeping the winger for the next campaign.

Dangle took it up a notch on his podcast when he suggested that the Maple Leafs go on and move Marner to the Carolina Hurricanes in a monster one-for-one trade for the services of Martin Necas. Chris Johnston asked him about the possible transition and Dangle did not hesitate to reply:

“Sounds great, any change, any change. Dude, we know this group doesn’t work.”

I’m however unsure that a Marner for Necas trade is fair for the Leafs with the latter’s perceived worth being lower than Toronto’s star winger’s. But who knows? Maybe general manager Brad Treliving could become desperate and choose to move Marner for Necas in the end…

Chatter emerged out of Raleigh once the Canes were eliminated from the postseason and Necas’ father explained how his son would like to play somewhere other than Carolina, on a first line and on the first power play. That’s because head coach Brind’Amour never used Necas in such a way, stapling him to the right wing for much of his past five seasons in Carolina. Necas has still put up impressive numbers nonetheless, leading the team in scoring in 2022-23 with 28 goals and 71 points, while recording 24 tallies this season with a total of 53 points. He is a restricted free agent with arbitration rights this offseason and has been involved in trade chatter for weeks now.

While Marner is staying put in Toronto for now, since the opening of free agency, Treliving managed to add some depth on the Leafs’ back end without having to move the star winger in a cost-cutting trade.

However, Dangle believes this is not good enough. What about you?