Mitch Marner is trying to make the peace with Toronto Maple Leafs fans and it isn't really working. His latest attempt involved the Vegas Golden Knights winger trying to explain how hard his decision to leave the only team he knew, eventually was.
On After Hours with Scott Oake on Saturday night, Marner went over the troubles he had while trying to make a decision regarding his future in Toronto.
"Definitely sleepless nights... it was not an easy decision at all."
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) October 19, 2025
Mitch Marner shared his thoughts on leaving the Maple Leafs on #AfterHours with @ScottOake. pic.twitter.com/W98EWurDTa
"Very difficult, there was a couple, definitely, sleepless nights, just thinking of a massive decision, not only for me but for my family, my wife, my son as well. It was super tough, it was not an easy decision at all. Tough moments at the time, but tried to make the best move that we thought was going to best for our family going forward," Marner said.
What the former Leafs winger said is not anything new. Since moving to the Golden Knights last summer, Marner has been consistent in saying that it's the right move for his young family. Whether or not that's a dig at how Toronto and its media handles the players on the Leafs, is obviously unclear, but it certainly is a very classic hockey player thing to do.
For Marner to leave the centre of the hockey universe, to leave the option to be heralded as one of the greatest ever players to put on the Blue and White, just to then go to a team that didn't exist a few years ago and used other team's mistakes to get them to a Stanley Cup, was predictable. There's hardly any media attention on Vegas. The fans there are all new to the sport, the beat reporters won't go so hard on the team -- it's an extremely comfortable position no matter how well or how terrible he's playing.
During the brief interview Saturday night, Marner really tried to hit home that it was a decision for his family but in the end it's really just leaving a market and a team that actually means something to the sport, not some cheap and plastic expansion franchise.
The Vegas Golden Knights will visit the Maple Leafs for the first time on January 23, in one of the most anticipated regular season games for Toronto this season.