Marner upbeat, back on the ice
Mitch Marner’s positive attitude has not dimmed during the three months the NHL has been on pause.
The Maple Leafs winger is confident his team and the NHL are doing the right things to get players back on the ice for an expected resumption of play in early August.
The NHL is currently in the second phase of a four-phase return. The league approved small group workouts last week, and Marner feels he has even more to be positive about now that he is on the ice with a group of Leafs that includes defencemen Jake Muzzin and Cody Ceci, goalie Jack Campbell and forwards John Tavares and Ilya Mikheyev.
“I think the NHL has everything under control through what I’ve seen through the last week or so,” Marner said Thursday. “They’re doing all the right things to make sure no one is going to be in a bad place if something goes wrong.”
Marner and his teammates undergo daily temperature checks, have nasal tests for the virus twice a week and wear masks while in the dressing room with other players.
The Leafs have about 20 players at the Ford Performance Centre, with a full roster expected when the league enters Phase 3 on July 10.
Marner said there was about an 11-week period where he did not skate, with rinks and training facilities shut down. He has been able to ramp up his skating, get his feel for the puck, and be around teammates again.
“It’s great getting back out there with a couple of the guys and getting to enjoy the locker room again with them,” said Marner, who may stay on a line with current training partners Tavares and Mikheyev once the games resume.
Marner isn’t dimmed by the fact his foundation, the Marner Assist Fund, has had to suspend some of its fundraising activities. The fund launched a campaign during the pandemic to aid front-line workers and first responders, and there are plans for new initiatives.
“We’ve been talking about doing something virtually,” Marner said of a postponed fundraiser. “Hopefully we can get back into (larger) gatherings in October or so.”
The Leafs still have key players missing. Centre Auston Matthews and goaltender Frederik Andersen are getting their work in at Matthews’ residence in Arizona.