Maple Leafs Roundtable: Where Should Mitch Marner Play?

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a big decision to make when it comes to one of their top prospects for the 2016-2017 hockey season.

Fourth overall pick Mitch Marner is a hot topic lately – and not simply for the OHL Playoffs.

The Toronto Maple Leafs top prospect not playing professional hockey right now is getting attention for where he may, or may not, play next season.

Debates are ongoing, and we’re no different.

Here’s what our staff had to say about where Mitch Marner should play for the 2016-2017 hockey season.

Next: John Krpan's Take

Jeff Williams

I’m going to say right away that I think Marner will make the Maple Leafs out of training camp next season. He has the skill and vision to play at the highest level and at some point that’s all that matters.

“But he’s too small” is what I keep hearing. Yes. You’re all right. He is too small right now to be in the NHL and thats why he isn’t. He’s in the OHL. We’re not talking about now though, we’re talking about next year. For an 18 year old a calendar year can make a massive difference in his strength and frame.

“Management says they won’t rush prospects” is always the second point made. Again, I agree. They won’t rush prospects and again, that’s why Mitch Marner isn’t in the NHL right now. He’s dominating the OHL while he gains strength and confidence.

So lets talk out those two points, they seem to be the most prevalent among those that think he should return to junior.

Number 1 is easy. He’s small and as I said, a year can make a big difference to a small frame. He needs to approach this summer intelligently when he hits the gym. Its not as straightforward as going to your summer trainer and telling them to “make me big.”

We’ve seen this before in Leafs nation with Nazem Kadri. He was too small so he put on weight at the cost of speed. He was never the quickest player anyway so the further lack of speed really set him back. Marner will rely on his speed throughout his career so doing anything to jeopardize that probably isn’t the best course of action.

In my opinion, Marner simply needs to keep working on speed and conditioning while putting just a touch more concentration on bulk and strength. He’s never going to be a big, strong NHLer so why force it? The biggest stumbling block for many young players is trying to be something you aren’t or trying to do too much.

Simply put, Marner needs “man strength” and that’s something that comes naturally, not from the gym. So if he combines the natural size and strength that he’ll have packed on over a calendar year with what he was doing in the gym anyway, he should be strong enough to handle the vigor of the NHL this fall.

Number 2 is easier. Marner arguably had the skill to play in the NHL right out of the gate. He got pushed off pucks too easily and wasn’t effective in the corners but when he hit open ice opponents had trouble handling him.

If management wanted to rush him they could have started him in the big leagues right away but they didn’t. They wanted to let his body catch up with his skill. So they’ve given him a year to refine his game, get more crafty and grow stronger.

At the end of the day though, as I said, skill will be all that matters.

Marner is never going to be a big, strong player. He’s always going to be one of the slimmer guys on the ice. So in order to figure out how to play in the NHL with that disadvantage it’s imperative that he plays in the NHL with that disadvantage.

The last point I’d like to make is simple. His skill has outgrown the OHL. He’s simply too good to be there. If you want him to continue on an upward trajectory then you need to bring him up to the NHL. Ideally, he could play in the AHL against lesser competition. In a league where the protective “goon” still thrives and can look after him.

That’s not an option. Letting him stagnate in the OHL isn’t an option either. There’s only one option left. In the 2016/17 season I hope to welcome Mitch Marner as a regular Toronto Maple Leaf. Anything else would be a waste of a developmental year.

Next: Rachel Halliwell's Take

Rachel Halliwell

Mitch Marner is an exceptional talent. He scored 116 points for the London Knights this season, and has 9 points in 2 playoff games. His countless highlight-reel goals show his offensive abilities and potential. However, there is much more to being a great NHL hockey player than just scoring goals.

The bottom line is that Marner is just not ready to compete in the NHL next season. Not even close. He is in no way too good for the OHL. He has so much more to learn and so much room for improvement. He is also not physically ready to compete in a league with men.

There is so much more to the game than just getting points. It is so important for a player like that to be consistent, be a leader, be just as good without the puck as they are with the puck etc. Mike Babcock is all over the kids this season telling them that they need to focus more on their game when they don’t have the puck, and to be quite frank, Marner doesn’t have much of a game without the puck.

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Max Domi (former London Knight) was sent back to the Knights after his first training camp with the Coyotes. Coach Dave Tippett told him, in a nutshell, are you going to go back and just play, or are you going to go and dominate the game. Domi lead that team, he commanded the game and made a difference when it mattered. He dominated in the OHL and at the World Juniors last year. He plays in the NHL this season, and he looks pretty darn good.

Mitch Marner can put plenty of points on the board… against other kids in the OHL. He was less than impressive at the World Junior tournament, where everyone expected him to dominate.

On Leafs Lunch, TSN’s Craig Button talked about throwing Mitch Marner into the NHL or AHL when he’s not ready. He said, “If I wanted to teach you to swim, would it make sense that I just drop you in the deepest part of the water in the middle of the ocean?”

Mike Babcock wants the Maple Leafs to be a very sound team offensively, but especially defensively. It is very much a defense first mentality going forward for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Mitch Marner needs to find that dominant aspect of his game. He’s going to have to become a real solid two-way player. He needs to dominate and control the game, be a leader, and make a difference when it matters. If Marner can’t dominate at the junior level, can anyone really expect him to at the NHL level?

Next: Wesley Smith's Take

Wesley Smith

Where should Mitchell Marner play in the 2016-2017 season has been a question that’s been asked by Leafs fans throughout the year, almost non-stop.

Mitchell Marner should play the 2016-2017 season with the London Knights of the OHL.

This is not because he isn’t skilled enough to compete for a spot with the Maple Leafs. There’s no doubt in my mind he will be with the club until the end of training camp, maybe even play the nine game allowance before burning the first year of his entry level contract.

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However I personally feel that Mitchell Marner is just not physically ready for the NHL game yet, at least not the full year. There’s no doubting his talent level, he’s arguably already the most talented player in the Maple Leafs organization. However, he is still only five-foot-eleven – which isn’t all that short – but it is the fact that he weighs just over 160 pounds that concerns me.

Some NHL players are capable of overcoming size issues, currently there’s Johnny Gaudreau and even Leafs own William Nylander isn’t all that much bigger than Marner. The biggest difference I see in the two players I just named is that they use their head exceptionally well during the game.

Not to say that Marner doesn’t think the game well, he does. but he also has lapses in judgement that could get him rocked at the next level. Looking back to the quarter final game against Finland at the world juniors he played spectacular, no question.

There’s one play I keyed on, and it was the move he made through four Finish players at their blue line. Yes it resulted in an unbelievable scoring opportunity and a pretty highlight, but in the NHL if he wants to do something like that there are plenty of players who will light him up ten out of ten times.

I am a big fan of Marner, and think he will be a very good NHL player, however I just don’t think that next season is the season.

Next: Tim Chiasson's Take

Tim Chiasson

Deciding where Mitch Marner should play five months ahead of the pre-season is a tough call.

It’s not hard to see that he’s outgrown the Ontario Hockey League, but is the Toronto Maple Leafs top prospect ready for the NHL? That’s where I’m not so sure.

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Mitch Marner is a victim of the ridiculous agreement between the NHL and the CHL that keeps young players who have outgrown junior from joining the American Hockey League.

William Nylander benefited from playing with the Toronto Marlies, something that Marner can’t be handed right now. So, where does that leave us?

It leaves us wondering if, during a time of patience and proper development, asking if Marner is ready to jump into the brightest spotlight in the National Hockey League by suiting up for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

He’s got the talent, the vision and the desire to be better than anyone else on the ice – there’s no debating that. I’d really like to see him with the Marlies, but since that can’t happen I think the Maple Leafs have no choice but to let him play in the NHL next year.

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Marner has nothing left to learn at the junior level, he’s past that. Another year of junior could quite possibly make him complacent, pick up bad habits or develop an ego. Of course, it could also do none of that and he could simply go about his business of destroying the OHL for another season. I’d prefer not to gamble, though.

Marner should play in the NHL next season with the Toronto Maple Leafs.