Leafs' Mitch Marner Shares Honest Reaction to Tough Assignment He Was Asked to Take On

The Toronto Maple Leafs pulled off a nervy 1-0 victory over the Montreal Canadiens last night in overtime despite dominating the game. What made it even more surprising was the fact that they only had 5 defensemen dressed.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Jake McCabe were both absent, and because of their salary cap situation, the Leafs were unable to make any recalls from the minors. Craig Berube and the rest of his coaching staff had no choice but to run 5 defenders, but they were also aware they had a few forwards who could help in a pinch.

Before the game forwards Steven Lorentz and Scott Laughton talked about how they've played the defensive position a few times in the past, whether at the NHL or junior levels, but it was always Mitch Marner's assignment to lose.

Any time this conversation has come up in the past, Marner's name has been at the forefront and it almost came to fruition last year when Mark Giordano went down with an injury. They didn't end up using Marner on D in a full game, but he was essentially a game-time call to play defense.

Last night was different and Marner was actually used on the blueline quite a few times, and through it all, the Canadiens were only able to muster up 15 shots on goal, including 7 in the first 40 minutes.

When asked how it felt playing on the back-end, Marner mentioned how he didn't feel lost when taking defensive shifts as he tries to simplify his approach and make the right play.

As for Berube, when asked the same question, he was a little more honest but was still very proud of his star forward's performance.

Marner jumped off the bench to replace Brandon Carlo in overtime, which allowed him to sneak in as the trailer man before potting the overtime winner. It was his 98th point on the year and he sits just 2 shy of his first 100-point season.

The Maple Leafs are back in action tonight against Carolina but they were able to recall Dakota Mermis on emergency basis. Marner will be able to focus solely on his offensive assignments as they look to separate themselves from the rest of the pack in the Atlantic Division.