Video May Show Mitch Marner Inadvertently Tipping Us Off About Plans to Leave Maple Leafs

When thinking about the Mitch Marner saga and how it ended, I can't help but think of the old song lyrics from "Sweating Bullets" by Megadeth, where Dave Mustaine mutters the words "hindsight is always 20/20, but looking back, it's still a bit fuzzy."

Of course, now, we have a little more clarity on how it all went down and just how long Marner had actually been plotting his escape from Toronto, but when the season ended, there was still some hope that the two sides to come to some sort of an agreement, either on a fair extension or a sign-and-trade that could have netted the Leafs a much better return.

However, looking back at Marner's interview directly following the Leafs' Game 7 loss to the Florida Panthers, it is even more clear now that he always already mentally checked out.

These are the words Marner used to describe how he was feeling after the loss. His body language completely backed up his words, as a dejected, slouching, mono-toned Marner responded to questions from the Toronto media.

Marner was directly asked about a potential contract extension during the same interview and deflected away questions of that nature, stating that he had no thoughts about it whatsoever. He did, however speak about how much he had always enjoyed the team and the city, past-tense. Perhaps that was the hint that we were looking for that he was already gone in his own mind.

Marner was also directly asked if he wanted another shot with the group in Toronto to see if they could push it over the finish line. His response didn't register then, but it certainly does now.

Marner was also specifically asked about Auston Matthews' comments about having "too many passengers". He agreed with that sentiment.

Knowing now what we didn't know then, it should have been a lot more clear what was coming. Now, all we can do is look forward and hope that the Leafs can still make a move to land a top-6 forward, or that the sum of the parts the Leafs have brought in are enough to keep them at or near the top of the Atlantic Division again.