C Mitchell Marner - London Knights, OHL (2015, 4th, TOR) IV

[Heldig]

I have not seen that comment, care to share?

It was in one of the prospect threads but not sure which one. Not at my computer but if I find the comment I will share it.

 

[Get North]

Marner reminds me of a slightly more dynamic Zach Parise.

He's got potential to be nominated for multiple Selke trophies.

His defense really flies under the radar tbh. I lived in London and watched a few of his games - he reminds me of Patrick Kane but with Datsyuk's defensive awareness.

Wouldn't even be surprised if he put up Kane-like offensive numbers while being competitive for the Selke in a few years...

I found it for him.

 

[Leafs at Knight]

I found it for him.

That post says he has the POTENTIAL to be Nominated for numerous Selke trophies; so keep looking for the post that says he's a for sure future Selke winner. I'll be here.

 

[AINEC*]

I found it for him.

The "potential" to be "nominated"

Haha

 

[one77]

He leads the league in short-handed goals, all while completely dominating offensively. I've said it before, to me he looks like a Kane/Gilmour/Datsyuk hybrid. Elite IQ, skating, vision, great laser shot, and very responsible defensively.

 

[RoyalGremlin]

Just give him the Hart already.

 

[Heldig]

The "potential" to be "nominated"

Haha

My bad...however a page later it was joked that based on the comparisons then we should expect Marner being far and away the best player in the NHL. The reply was Along the lines of not expecting it but "wouldn't be surprised".

 

[hamzarocks]

My bad...however a page later it was joked that based on the comparisons then we should expect Marner being far and away the best player in the NHL. The reply was Along the lines of not expecting it but "wouldn't be surprised".

prospects get hyped up, no one(well except for a few insane guys) actually expect marner to be the best player in the world. Not unless eichel, mack, mcdavid, johnny hockey, strome, nylander, ehlers, drouin, etc retire. These are guys who he will be competing with(probably left out others) and these are just the younger generation. A realistic max potential i see for marner, is top 3 winger or top 10 center. He will be amazing but no one expects him to be that great. He has it in him to be a top 10-20 player in his prime. Just like kane was before this year. I think he can put up kane like num's from years prior, but i don't expect him to be scoring 100 plus points in a season

 

[Atomos2]

Gretzky, Crosby and Mcdavid...

I know, the context is off and one was just a reference for laughs (Gretzky)


But still...Gretzky, Crosby and McDavid?

...why do we do this to ourselves.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Gretzky, Crosby and Mcdavid...

I know, the context is off and one was just a reference for laughs (Gretzky)


But still...Gretzky, Crosby and McDavid?

...why do we do this to ourselves.

Want to add Doug Gimour to the list? You have to be a bit worried for Marner. The expectations on this kid are becoming off the charts unreachable with these comparisons. No one ever said playing in Toronto was ever going to be easy.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

Gretzky, Crosby and Mcdavid...

I know, the context is off and one was just a reference for laughs (Gretzky)


But still...Gretzky, Crosby and McDavid?

...why do we do this to ourselves.

To be fair, Gretzky was from some no name news anchor woman. I haven't heard Crosby yet. The McDavid one is stupid.

I think most Leafs fans are excited at having drafted a prospect with legitimate star potential. We haven't drafted one since Kaberle, so people are maybe a bit more over-excited with regards to Marner (and to an extent, Nylander).

Really though if people have a problem reading hype about the kid, I wonder why they even bothered to enter the thread at all.

 

[Atomos2]

To be fair, Gretzky was from some no name news anchor woman. I haven't heard Crosby yet. The McDavid one is stupid.

I think most Leafs fans are excited at having drafted a prospect with legitimate star potential. We haven't drafted one since Kaberle, so people are maybe a bit more over-excited with regards to Marner (and to an extent, Nylander).

Really though if people have a problem reading hype about the kid, I wonder why they even bothered to enter the thread at all.

I know which is why I bolded the context part. But still, people are gonna come into this thread and see these names and the comparisons. We could quite possibly be providing the ammo to shoot ourselves in the leg in the future.

 

[TheLeastOfTheBunch]

Want to add Doug Gimour to the list? You have to be a bit worried for Marner. The expectations on this kid are becoming off the charts unreachable with these comparisons. No one ever said playing in Toronto was ever going to be easy.

Expectations are high for every high pick, especially ones who are producing as well as Marner. Some of the stuff being said needs to be tempered, I agree, but what do you expect from a large fan base like this, especially a fan base that hasn't had a whole lot to cheer about?
Besides, didn't you say in the Strome thread that Joe Thornton is the comparison oft-seen for Dylan?

I don't think they were saying he's a clone of Gilmour, just comparing playing styles (same as Strome and Thornton)

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Expectations are high for every high pick, especially ones who are producing as well as Marner. Some of the stuff being said needs to be tempered, I agree, but what do you expect from a large fan base like this, especially a fan base that hasn't had a whole lot to cheer about?
Besides, didn't you say in the Strome thread that Joe Thornton is the comparison oft-seen for Dylan?

I don't think they were saying he's a clone of Gilmour, just comparing playing styles (same as Strome and Thornton)

I get that. This fanbase needs something to believe in. Marner represents this. Maybe I am just older and have been around longer. I have seen a lot of great hopes not live up to their expectations. Marner has entered a realm even I have not seen in these parts for decades.

No one I have seen here has ever called him a subpar prospect that I have read. But saying he is better than Eichel, yes, we have read this. Mentioning him to the HOF players he is being mentioned with does raise the bar for him. Like I said, I don't envy the kid. Expectations are at an all time high for this Leafs prospect.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

I know which is why I bolded the context part. But still, people are gonna come into this thread and see these names and the comparisons. We could quite possibly be providing the ammo to shoot ourselves in the leg in the future.

Oh some Leafs fans definitely are. Memories are long around here, and foggy as well. That clip of that news woman is going to turn into "And Leafs fans were comparing him to Gretzky lol" not even a year from now.

 

[Giuseppe Sallo]

He leads the league in short-handed goals, all while completely dominating offensively. I've said it before, to me he looks like a Kane/Gilmour/Datsyuk hybrid. Elite IQ, skating, vision, great laser shot, and very responsible defensively.

Doug Gilmour

 

[Mitchy]

I get that. This fanbase needs something to believe in. Marner represents this. Maybe I am just older and have been around longer. I have seen a lot of great hopes not live up to their expectations. Marner has entered a realm even I have not seen in these parts for decades.

No one I have seen here has ever called him a subpar prospect that I have read. But saying he is better than Eichel, yes, we have read this. Mentioning him to the HOF players he is being mentioned with does raise the bar for him. Like I said, I don't envy the kid. Expectations are at an all time high for this Leafs prospect.

You can say this for any top prospect.

 

[champs*]

 

[RoadWarrior]

Obviously he needs work on his skating

 

[Leaf19]

Made a compilation of the Marner gifs with Harlem Globetrotters music in the back

 

[cookie]

I get that. This fanbase needs something to believe in. Marner represents this. Maybe I am just older and have been around longer. I have seen a lot of great hopes not live up to their expectations. Marner has entered a realm even I have not seen in these parts for decades.

No one I have seen here has ever called him a subpar prospect that I have read. But saying he is better than Eichel, yes, we have read this. Mentioning him to the HOF players he is being mentioned with does raise the bar for him. Like I said, I don't envy the kid. Expectations are at an all time high for this Leafs prospect.

The only time he was said to be better than Eichel was by some scout that thought that he would out produce him by x season. That's not saying he's better than Eichel, even if you try your hardest to read in betweeen the lines--it's just a scout's opinion that ran wild amongst the HFBoards "contrarians". Marner and his linemates are putting up a gaudy amount of points in the OHL and their dominance reminds many of the Patty Kane, Sam Gagner and Sergei Kostitsyn trio.

The expectations based on Marner are some of the highest any player has gotten. He's relishing the chance and increased scrutiny and when you add all of that together, why wouldn't a fanbase be giddy about the thought of seeing him play for the team? He's an exceptional talent most Leafs haven't seen grow up in front of them since, I don't know, Damphousse? That's a loong time if you don't count Rielly and Kadri (and you shouldn't, either).

As for who he plays like, I don't think Patty Kane is that great a comparable. Marner's game looks really efficient and purposeful. Compared to Kane, there's less glamour and instead there's tons of thinking on not just in where to position one's self but also on the positioning of others around him. His head fakes and feints, for instance, seem less and less spontaneous and more pre-planned the more I get to watch him... it's really something if he's 100% thinking that far ahead. Aside from that, he seems to have no trouble predicting how plays will develop with and without the puck. As for his physical gifts--his edgework is remarkable and it looks as if advanced skating maneuvres are second nature to him. I hate comparing guys but Denis Savard seems like a good comparable, especially with the size issues... Obviouslly the OHL and NHL are different leagues but Marner's got skills that can instantly make him useful on most any team.

EDIT: I just remembered that HFBoard's very own nki had a detailed scouting report on Marner before the draft. Is there a poster who'll try to follow nki's lead for this year?

 

[Fire Sweeney]

Fascinating to watch him destroy the competition, yet sad to see him wasting a year in junior when he should be in the NHL.

 

[Namikaze Minato]

Fascinating to watch him destroy the competition, yet sad to see him wasting a year in junior when he should be in the NHL.

We can all agree he wasn't ready for the NHL at the start of this season. AHL likely would have been the best option, but it was unavailable and its hard to know if a first time professional would have been able to gain confidence after a slow start in a professional league.

Certainly his talent is undeniable and it would be hard to fathom him not producing at that level now, but it was the right decision at the time for him to go back to junior.

 

[HockeyGuruPitka]

I almost got the sense in training camp that Marner wanted to go back to junior for one more year. Didnt see any tenacity in his game during camp.

 

[Atomos2]

Made a compilation of the Marner gifs with Harlem Globetrotters music in the back

Lol. You should've also used his penalty killing skate he did in the Summer Canada Russia game and also the Canada Russia series last month.