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Toronto Maple Leafs: Mitch Marner On the Way to a Hart Trophy Nomination

By James Tanner

TORONTO, CANADA - OCTOBER 13: Mitchell Marner #16 of the Toronto Maple Leafs congratulates teammate Ilya Samsonov #35 on victory against the Washington Capitals in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on October 13, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defeated the Capitals 3-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, CANADA - OCTOBER 13: Mitchell Marner #16 of the Toronto Maple Leafs congratulates teammate Ilya Samsonov #35 on victory against the Washington Capitals in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on October 13, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defeated the Capitals 3-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /
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The Toronto Maple Leafs already have one MVP on the roster. They could soon have another.

Mitch Marner is already the best winger in the NHL, and the Toronto Maple Leafs co-franchise player is also in the conversation for the title of Best Player in the World, along with Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, Cale Makar and pretty much no one else.

Crosby, Mackinnon, Robertson, and Kaprizov are all nice players, but (other than Crosby who is still great, just older) they aren’t as good as Mitch Marner because Marner brings elite defense to the table as well as best-in-show scoring.

What makes Marner better than those players, is that he scores as much (or more) than they do, but Marner is also an elite defender.

If Marner isn’t currently the favorite to win the Hart Trophy, just wait a few weeks.

Toronto Maple Leafs Second Hart Trophy Winner?

Marner is currently just 5 points off the 5v5 scoring lead, but the Leafs couldn’t buy a goal for their first ten or so games of the year at 5v5, and he’s catching up.  He does lead the NHL in 5v5 scoring and points per minute since his return from injury last January 15th.

In a few weeks, I am confident Marner will lead the league in 5v5 scoring.

There are currently 102 players in the NHL who have played 400 5v5 minutes this season, and Mitch Marner leads them all in points per minute.

Marner is currently almost 20 points behind McDavid for the scoring title, but he’s catching up. He is currently 12th in league scoring.  He’d be a lot higher if the Leafs didn’t have four elite scorers to spread the wealth around with.  He’d also be a lot higher if Auston Matthews wasn’t so cold to start the season, robbing Marner of 8-10 assists he’d otherwise have had.

The points streak is now at 21 games, and that’s impressive.   The scoring is impressive, but it’s the overall game that makes Marner a Hart Trophy Favorite.

Marner is an elite 5v5 defender.

Marner is an elite penalty killer.

In addition to being a leader, a power-play threat, and one of the best scorers in the NHL.

He even invented a signature move, which is the breakaway, deke, drop pass into an empty net.

He is already the second best player in franchise history. (stats naturalstattrick.com).

Next. This Should be the Leafs Top Priority. dark

And it might not be likely, but there is a chance that Marner is going to become the Toronto Maple Leafs second Hart Trophy winner in as many seasons.

And not only did I tell you so, but I also invented the question mark, you best believe me this time.

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