No hitch with Mitch
Re: The hitch with Mitch, Michael Traikos, Feb. 7
If, as Mr. Traikos suggests, Mitch Marner commands less value than Auston Matthews or John Tavares in the eyes of Leaf management, then they are clearly out to lunch.
At present, Mr. Marner has established himself as the Leaf ’s best forward and one of the league’s top play makers. While not a physically imposing individual, he led the team in total points despite being partially relegated to fourth line status last year and was their top point producer in the playoff series against the Boston Bruins. He is again leading the team in total points this season and would have likely eclipsed the 100 point total but for the lunkhead decision to put him and Tavares on separate lines. He may still but it will be more difficult. Lastly he has avoided the injury bug and has carried himself with class away from the rink (as fans and charities can attest).
As for the Matthews contract, I consider it extremely generous to bestow on someone who has missed significant portions of the current and previous seasons with injuries and is streaky scoring wise. Were I the GM, I would have considered a smaller base salary but added incentives based upon regular season and playoff performance and games played. I hope it works out but at this point the contract appears to be a rather expensive gamble. It certainly “raises the bar” as to what other Leaf players should request salary-wise.
John Winegarden, Scarborough, Ont.