Popular Hockey Personality Starting a Campaign to Get Mitch Marner to Leave Toronto

When news broke that the Leafs were in heavy pursuit of Mikko Rantanen ahead of the trade deadline, it became apparent that Mitch Marner's future in Toronto is very much in question.

So much so that he was even asked to waive his no-movement clause.

Many believe that Marner will test the market on July 1st when he officially becomes a free agent and there will be no shortage of interested teams. It is there he will have to decide whether being a Leaf or being the highest paid winger the NHL is more important to him.

With the belief that he will test free agency, ESPN's John Buccigross humorously started a campaign on 'X' to court Marner into signing with the San Jose Sharks.

San Jose, like the Chicago Blackhawks, will have more than enough cap space to make Marner the highest paid winger in NHL history, but they do also have some talent up front, which could make them more appealing.

Let's not forget that San Jose also has Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau available to help court Marner and persuade him to join the franchise as the 'go to' guy.

Should Marner choose not to return to the Leafs, it will be difficult to replace him on the ice talent-wise, but the $14M in cap space will certainly make the loss much easier to digest.