"You got two more weeks and then we're done": Auston Matthews pushes back on Mitch Marner related questions

The Toronto Maple Leafs started their preseason with a 4-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Sunday. Their captain, Auston Matthews, kept a close eye on the young Leafs who took the ice and earned the win.

But as has been the case for most of the offseason, the reporters in Toronto slipped in a question about former Leafs superstar Mitch Marner, who left the club this offseason, signing an eight-year, $96 million contract with the Vegas Golden Knights.

Auston Matthews was asked if he had found a new partner to do a post-practice routine, where he and Marner would stay back in the rink for a few more reps. Matthews reminded them that he wouldn't be entertaining Marner-related questions once the regular season begins.

“We'll see. You got two more weeks, and then we’re done with these questions,” he said with a small smile.

While he did his best to hide his frustration, Matthews had also reminded the bunch of reporters on Friday after their training that the Mitch Marner contract talk is not expected to be a distraction for the team.

“I don’t really think any of the outside stuff was a distraction last year,” Matthewssaid. “And, you know, it’s definitely not a distraction this year. Maybe you guys will ask a couple more Mitchy questions here for the next couple of weeks (smile), but hopefully that’ll die down here shortly.”

Matthews found Marner on the right for most of the last nine seasons he has played at the club. The latter has been a major assist provider to Matthews as he looks to surpass Mats Sundin as the franchise's highest goal scorer this year.

In the last four seasons, Marner had gotten an assist on 95 of the captain's goals. Matthews was restricted to just 33 goals last season, less than half of the 69 he got in 2023-24. The 28-year-old is expected to regain the same potency as last season after an undisclosed upper body injury hurt his play.

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Auston Matthews speaks about building chemistry with Matias Maccelli

Mitch Marner's replacement in the first line alongside Auston Matthews is expected to be Matias Maccelli, who was traded from Utah in July. The pair are getting to know each other alongside Matthew Knies during camp.

“It’s been good,” Matthews said. “I think every day, you know, a little bit better, and I think that’s all you can ask for, especially early on in camp. You just want to build that chemistry and continue to take steps every single day, which I feel like we’ve been doing.”

Apart from Maccelli, the Leafs have the choice of playing Max Domi on the first line. If both Maccelli and Domi can help with a 200-foot game, Auston Matthews can be expected to take more shots on goal, something that saw a dip last season.

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Edited by nagpaltusharn25