Marner demands historic bridge contract!

Summer is all almost over yet the contract impasse between Mitch Marner and the Toronto Maple Leafs seems far from the being resolved.Over the weekend, Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas admitted that the Marner talks are into ‘a bit of a slog’ at the moment and with this latest information, we completely get why. 

According to Leafs insider James Mirtle of The Athletic, the Marner is reportedly seeking the most expensive bridge contract ever since in NHL history. 

Marner not only wants a three-year deal; he also seeks a $10 million annual salary to come with it. Earlier this summer, it was revealed that the Leafs had been looking to offer the young forward an eight-year deal with an AAV of $11 millions. However, Marner reportedly made it clear that he does not want a long term deal with Toronto at the moment. 

He wants to have his cake and eat it too… 

The Leafs have explained to him that they cannot offer him a shorter five-year deal, seeing that it would come to an end at the same time as teammates William Nylander and Auston Matthews. Consequently, Dubas would have offered Marner a three-year, six-year and seven-year deals, per Mirtle. 

Earlier this month, Marner, who is coming off a monstrous season in which he put up 94 points, revealed he “probably” won’t attend Toronto’s training camp - set to open Sept. 17 - without a contract in hand, though he added he’d prefer to be there.

Mirtle seems sure to say that: “What’s clear at this point is that, if Marner re-signs, it will be a significant contract outside of Toronto. It will be controversial and precedent-setting for the league.”

Let’s get ready for it...