NHL insider points out the biggest issue with Mitch Marner's free agency - "That's the confusing part"

Mitch Marner is all but assured to play on a new team next year. He and the Toronto Maple Leafs are splitting up for the first time, and that could open the door to a true free agency frenzy.

Without the hometown team's competition, plenty of other franchises could easily throw their hat in the ring. For the top forward, there's expected to be quite a lot of interest soon.

NHL insider James Duthie has shared his thoughts on the situation. Speaking on "First Up," he said that the Vegas Golden Knights, Leafs, and Los Angeles Kings are the top contenders right now:

"Let's say it's wrong and that [Maple Leafs] are still interested and Mitch somehow has a change of heart. He's still interested. So if those are the three teams, maybe there's one other one he wants to visit. So there's four teams, and you're gonna do a trip to every city with your wife and and you're not gonna make decisions on July 15." (14:29)

If Marner is touring the league to find his new home, and he's likely to command $14 or $15 million, then teams will have to wait for his decision. This means that they can't spend on other free agents in the meantime, and if a team does wait and misses out, then they're in trouble.

The analyst added:

"That's the only flaw I see in that process... that's the confusing part."

Duthie said he understands that Marner has no obligation to provide a show on day one of free agency, though he wishes he would.

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NHL insider laments how things turned out with Mitch Marner, Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs had a lot of promise when they brought in Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner to be their frontline of the future. Things didn't pan out the way they'd hoped, and Marner has been ripped by fans and the media and is now on his way out.

Mitch Marner's Leafs tenure ended badly (Imagn)

It didn't have to be like that, as NHL insider Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun argued:

"We should have celebrated all that he was and could have been. But the marriage between athlete and community got lost in playoff instability, the relationship between star and its hopeful fanbase tripped all over itself until time ran out and there was no place to go for counselling."

Things ended on the wrong note, but Mitch Marner represented hope and was a legitimate star for the Maple Leafs for a very long time.

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Edited by John Maxwell