Core Members of the Maple Leafs Make Frustrating Plea to the Front Office Following Game 7 Defeat

The writing has been on the wall for several weeks now, but heading into the playoffs, it became very apparent that the fate of the Core 4 rested in their own hands and how they performed in the post-season.

After coming out of the gates with 3 straight wins against Ottawa, the Leags were able to escape the first round in 6 games before setting up a date with the Florida Panthers. A back and forth affair saw the Panthers advance to their 3rd straight Conference Finals berth with a dominant performance in Game 7.

The sentiment coming out of their Game 5 defeat reflected what everyone already believed in relation to the future standings of Mitch Marner and John Tavares. There was a glimmer of hope after they won Game 6, but their performance last night was more than enough for the front office to finally blow things up.

As the horn sounded and the handshake line formed, it became more and more apparent that changes are going to be afoot and the players in the locker room are privy to the idea as well. Auston Matthews' comments about Marner after the game shines a light to that belief.

Tavares then made a plea to the front office in keeping the core intact for the 10th season in a row, believing another crack at the whip will change the outcome.

Unfortunately, in a city like Toronto, the uproar is going to be loud, and the front office will have to make some drastic changes for once. What helps is that both Tavares and Marner will be unrestricted free agents come July 1st, but there's a good chance they'll lose them for nothing.

At the very least, the Leafs would have ample cap space to find different reinforcements and after wasting their best season across the past decade, it's the most logical and likeliest of outcomes, even if the players want to stay for another kick at the can.