The Toronto Maple Leafs will try to remain Stanley Cup contenders after Mitch Marner signed with the Golden Knights. According to Chris Johnston, general manager Brad Treliving could find a way to replace him by partially following the model used by the Florida Panthers.
“I’m sure they want to see better five on five play or more consistent five on five play. You’re dictated by who your actual players are. You have to somewhat adapt to what you have, but, what are they going to be? They’re going to be aggressive forechecking team. I mean, I think everybody’s trying to be something like the Panthers honestly. Now, that’s not sustainable.”
According to Johnston, copying the Panthers’ model literally won’t help Auston Matthews and his teammates, but based on Florida’s success, there are some lessons that could allow the Leafs to finally take the next step in quality without Marner.
Who will replace Mitch Marner with Leafs?
The way for the Toronto Maple Leafs to replace Mitch Marner is by finding the right opportunities to refresh their roster through free agency. Johnston says that was the key to the success of the 2024-2025 version of the Panthers.
“On some level, you have to stick to what you are. Everybody’s going to try to be the Panthers now. You know what a lesson from the 2024-2025 Panthers should be? They made big changes. They lost guys that were in their top four when they won the Cup. They didn’t just bring back the same team. Obviously, they brought back the absolute core players, but, there’s opportunity in change. That’s what the Leafs have to look for. I’m not saying to mimic the Panthers, but there’s now a different opportunity to spend money elsewhere. Let’s see if Auston Matthews can do more to carry even a line on his own at times.”