In spite of the fact that he remains a Toronto Maple Leaf at least until the end of this current National Hockey League season, there’s no question that the Mitch Marner saga in Toronto saw a dramatic shift occur over the NHL’s Trade Deadline this past Friday.

We now know that Marner was approached at the deadline and asked to waive his no movement clause in order to facilitate a trade to the Carolina Hurricanes, and Marner appeared to be particularly emotional when asked about his future in Toronto following the deadline, but it would appear that Marner is genuine in his desire to remain in Toronto… at the right price.

A recent report from NHL Network Radio’s David Pagnotta has revealed that Marner is seeking a contract that would begin at $104 million over an 8 year deal, or in other words an average annual value and salary cap hit of $13 million per season. That number would put him just under the average annual value for teammate Auston Matthews, the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who is currently on a 5 year deal with an average annual value of $13.25 million per season.

Marner has been an elite point producer for the Toronto Maple Leafs from almost since the moment he arrived in the NHL and would likely go down as one of the greatest players in franchise history should he remain with the organization long term. Marner is already having himself another incredible season with 21 goals and 58 assists for 79 points in just 62 games, all while remaining one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL.

That being said Marner has become a polarizing figure in Toronto over the years, much of which has been his own doing, and it remains to be seen if fans would react positively to him being signed to big money long term after years of the Maple Leafs failing to achieve any kind of meaningful success in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Would you sign Marner at $13 million per season on a long term deal? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.