Mitch Marner explains why he left the Leafs and what went wrong in Toronto

Mitch Marner is now officially a member of the Vegas Golden Knights... and if you didn't believe it at first, well now we have photographic evidence.

Marner was greeted by Vegas showgirls and was presented with a shiny new #93 jersey upon he and his family's arrival in Sin City.

Check it out:

Marner spoke briefly to reporters about his decision to come to Vegas and how hard it was to leave Toronto.

"It was really tough to leave Toronto, to be honest. I didn't think it would ever really come to that day," Marner said.

Uh.. sure, Jan... I mean Mitch.

As for why he chose Vegas... well Marner let it slip that it's "always" been his plan to join the Golden Knights.

"Everything here is a good fit for my wife and I and our new son. The winning aspect of this team really helps everything as well. We have great players here. Luckily it all worked out because this is where we always wanted to be."

Marner, whose career has always been closely aligned with the wishes of his father Paul Marner, also admitted that his parents' annual trips to Las Vegas were a factor in his decision as well.

"T-Mobile Arena is all-time. It’s crazy. The vibe you get as soon as you walk into the arena, to the warmups to the start of the game. Just seeing the videos my parents have shown me from being at games and the love the fans give to the team is pretty special."

Make of that what you will.

Personally, I think Marner is a perfect fit for Vegas and that the Leafs will actually gain some value by simply turning the page.

Read below for our earlier report on Marner, published yesterday as the sign and trade occurred.

It is official.

On Monday, the Toronto Maple Leafs struck a deal with the Vegas Golden Knights to send star forward Mitch Marner to the city of Las Vegas, Nevada. Marner, who was set to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1st was traded one for one for Nicolas Roy and was signed to an eight year deal, reportedly worth $12 million per season.

It's worth noting that the Leafs were have rumored to have offered Marner an eight year contract worth $13.5 million per season.

Over the course of his relatively short NHL career thus far, Marner has established himself as one of the league's truly elite point producers. Marner is coming off of a season in which he recorded 27 goals and a career high of 75 assists for a career high of 102 points over an 81 game regular season. Players of that stature simply do not grow on trees and it is easy to see why Vegas felt that they had to get in early on Marner.

Marner also had 2 goals and 11 assists for a total of 13 points over Toronto's most recent 13 game playoff run but, much like his fellow Maple Leafs, has often been criticized for his inability to deliver in the biggest moments. Whether or not that will change for Marner now that he is moving away from the bright lights and the pressure of playing in his hometown market, arguably the biggest hockey market in North America, remains to be seen.

In Nicolas Roy the Maple Leafs acquire a natural centerman, a position of need for the Maple Leafs, and one who has championship experience under his belt having won championships at both the American Hockey League level with the Charlotte Checkers as well as at the National Hockey League level as a member of the Golden Knights.

Roy is coming off of a 71 game season in which he recorded 16 goals and 16 assists for a total of 32 points over 71 games. He will be entering the 4th year of a 5 year deal with the Maple Leafs next season, a deal that carries an average annual value and cap hit of $3 million per season.