Mitch Marner Returns to Toronto: A Familiar Rink, a Much Different Reception
When Mitch Marner steps onto the ice at Scotiabank Arena this Friday night, it won’t be in blue and white. He won’t be greeted by roaring cheers or chants of “Mitchy!”
echoing through the rafters. Instead, he'll be wearing the gold and black of the Vegas Golden Knights, and the reception is likely to be cold-maybe even icy.
Marner’s return to Toronto is more than just another game on the calendar. It’s the first time the former Maple Leafs star will play in front of his old home crowd since a dramatic offseason departure that left fans divided and emotions raw. And if last week’s matchup in Vegas was any indication, the boos are coming.
That game, played at T-Mobile Arena, wasn’t exactly neutral ground. Leafs fans made their presence known, and every time Marner touched the puck, the jeers followed. Afterward, Marner took it in stride.
“They got a passionate fan base,” he said. “They travel well, they’ve always done that.”
He wasn’t ready then to guess what kind of reception he’d get in Toronto. “We’ll get there when we get there,” he said. Well, we’re here now.
And for Marner, that means facing the music in the very building where his Toronto tenure ended in heartbreak. His last game at Scotiabank came in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals-a night that saw the Leafs fall flat and the crowd turn on them.
Marner, once a face of the franchise, was booed off the ice. That moment, for many, felt like the closing chapter of his Leafs career.
Friday night might feel like the epilogue.
These kinds of returns tend to swing one of two ways. Sometimes, a player is welcomed back with open arms, like Jonathan Toews earlier this week in Chicago. The longtime Blackhawks captain got a standing ovation from the United Center faithful-no surprise, considering he helped deliver three Stanley Cups.
But other times, the reaction is more bitter. Just ask John Tavares, who still hears it from Islanders fans every time he sets foot on Long Island after leaving in free agency nearly a decade ago.
Marner is likely to fall into the latter category. Yes, he’s a hometown kid who spent nearly a decade with the Leafs.
Yes, he’s sixth all-time in franchise scoring. But in the eyes of many fans, the legacy is complicated.
Toronto didn’t get the playoff success it craved, and when it came time for a new chapter, Marner didn’t stick around to finish the story.
Toronto fans are loyal, but they’re also demanding. They’ll embrace a player who brings results, or one who stays loyal through the ups and downs.
Marner, fairly or not, is seen as delivering neither. And on Friday night, the crowd will let him know.
There will be emotion. There will be noise. And for Mitch Marner, there will be no mistaking how Toronto feels about his return.