It’s the dog days of summer now in the NHL offseason.
Aside from a few stragglers, deals are done and teams are awaiting the arrival of the new season.
That has put the crucial movement of Mitch Marner on the backburner a bit. Everyone knows he moved from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Vegas Golden Knights in a sign-and-trade. But there’s not much reason to think about him right now.
Paul Griser of Pro Hockey Rumors has brought Marner back into the spotlight, though, with an analysis of the Vegas offseason.
In his new piece, Griser asks one massive question:
“How will Marner look outside of Toronto?”
That’s what everyone wants to know, isn’t it?
Here’s how Griser breaks it down further:
The brightest spotlight in the league will be trained on Marner as he pursues his first season with the Golden Knights. The 28-year-old winger had a career-year last season, crossing the century mark for the first time with 102 points in 81 games. He’s paced for at least 100 points in each of the last four seasons, but often missed a handful of games for one reason or another. Still, that will be an incredible talent to join a Golden Knights offense already featuring Jack Eichel and Mark Stone. While he’s already played next to some of the best in the world, Marner could find the best setting of his career on Vegas’ top-line. If he does, the Golden Knights could find the X-factor they need to will to another Stanley Cup. If not, they’ll be strapped with a contract that pushes them against the cap ceiling, and a winger who commands attention in roster construction.
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Marner is a two-way star, but the NHL hasn’t yet seen him in a uniform other than the Maple Leafs.
There will be a bit of suspense until Marner finally hits his groove during the season in Vegas.
The reality is there’s no reason to doubt Marner. He has so many talents that it should all work nicely.
But it is still a question. Can Marner be everything he was in Toronto now for the Golden Knights?
They certainly hope so. They invested a lot in Marner.
And all season long, Maple Leafs fans will be watching out of the corners of their eyes. Just how well is Marner doing in Vegas? It could be one of the defining stories of the 2025-26 NHL season.
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