Bruce Boudreau shares controversial take on Mitch Marner's return to Toronto
Photo credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Former Vancouver Canucks head coach Bruce Boudreau shared a controversial take on ex-Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner's return to Toronto with Vegas, set for Friday night.
It's going to be one of the biggest nights of the year on Friday, as ex-Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner will make his long awaited return to Toronto wearing a Vegas Golden Knights sweater.
Marner was infamously traded in a major sign and trade deal with Vegas over the summer for Nicolas Roy; Marner signed an eight year deal with an AAV (average annual value) of $12 million, which is a $1.1 million raise over his previous contract with the Leafs.
Former NHL head coach Bruce Boudreau said that he hopes the Maple Leafs fans in what will be a sellout at Scotiabank Arena will give Marner the kind of warm and loving reception that ex-Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews got earlier in the week when he returned with the Winnipeg Jets.
I hope, I hope that it's the same kind of reception that Jonathan Toews got in Chicago. I mean, he's contributed quite an awful lot to the Maple Leafs. I mean, I'm sure the playoffs haven't gone that good, but for 82 games every year, he's up there with 90+ points, an exciting player.
I remember the first game that I coached against him, he had like six breakaways. He didn't score on any, but he gets open. I thought he was a superstar from day one, and I hope the Leafs appreciate him like that, or the Toronto people appreciate him like that, and not the guy that was used in a scapegoat for bad playoff runs. He was a great Toronto Maple Leaf, I hope he gets the reward that the Toronto Maple Leaf fans can give, and they're good at it when they want to be. - Bruce Boudreau
I remember the first game that I coached against him, he had like six breakaways. He didn't score on any, but he gets open. I thought he was a superstar from day one, and I hope the Leafs appreciate him like that, or the Toronto people appreciate him like that, and not the guy that was used in a scapegoat for bad playoff runs. He was a great Toronto Maple Leaf, I hope he gets the reward that the Toronto Maple Leaf fans can give, and they're good at it when they want to be. - Bruce Boudreau
Toews got a standing ovation from the crowd at United Center that lasted several minutes.
Mitch Marner Now Plays For The Vegas Golden Knights
After his entire tenure in a Maple Leafs sweater yielded only two total postseason series wins, Marner's time in Toronto closed with the sign and trade deal to Vegas.
He and his new Golden Knights teammates have already beaten the Leafs once this month, 6-5 in OT at T-Mobile Arena.
How Marner is received by the Maple Leafs fans in Toronto remains to be seen.
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| POLL | ||
JANVIER 23|202 ANSWERS Bruce Boudreau shares controversial take on Mitch Marner's return to Toronto Will Mitch Marner be cheered or booed in his return to Toronto? | ||
| Cheered | 85 | 42.1 % |
| Booed | 117 | 57.9 % |
| List of polls | ||