When Mitch Marner walked into the dressing room on Monday, he was greeted by Team Canada’s 20 Stanley Cups.
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The 4 Nations tournament puts him in a locker room he’s never experienced before—one with exceptional Stanley Cup experience. Auston Matthews and William Nylander also found themselves next to similar levels of Stanley Cup greatness on Monday morning.
It’s no secret that even though the Toronto Maple Leafs have made the playoffs each of the last eight years, they’ve only advanced out of the first round once.
But what people don’t always remember is in those eight years, not once was there a best-on-best tournament. The last time NHLers represented their countries was in 2016 and the only current Toronto Maple Leafs to play were Auston Matthews, John Tavares and Morgan Rielly. Only one of these three will be competing in this week’s tournament. And even so, Matthews was a rookie in 2016. He played alongside young elites like Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, but none of them knew how to win in the NHL, yet.
Of course, the lack of best-on-best opportunity isn’t the reason the Maple Leafs haven’t won a Stanley Cup yet with this core, but imagine what they could have learned from hockey greats if they’d been given this chance before. They’ve missed out on an opportunity to gain knowledge on how to finish the job in the biggest moments. After eight years since the last international action (and after eight years of early playoff exits), these Maple Leaf stars finally get to be surrounded by winners at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Starting with Marner, this next week and a half marks a considerable leadership break. Instead of juggling Toronto’s assistant captain duties, he can sit back and listen to Sidney Crosby, Drew Doughty and arguably the two <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/marner-skating-with-mcdavid-on-top-line-for-team-canada-ahead-of-4-nations-face-off">best players in the world</a>, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon. All of them have played in Stanley Cup final games. Marner will be flooded with examples of what championship calibre play looks like, firsthand. As a player who has a tendency to let his game slip in the playoffs, he now gets a unique chance to experience how some of the greats deal with big moments, and hopefully, the opportunity to take with him lessons about the big stage that he can put into practice in the upcoming playoff rounds.
Nylander on <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/team-sweden-preview-william-nylander-expected-pivotal-role-in-offence">the other hand</a>, will be a little bit different than Marner, as he gets the honour of taking on more leadership by wearing an ‘A’ for team Sweden. Having an anchor of a captain like Victor Hedman, who has won back-to-back Stanley Cups, skating beside him will teach him one of the hardest abstracts to lock down in sports: How to win.
Now think about his other Swedish teammates, guys like Filip Forsberg, Erik Karlsson and Mattias Ekholm, guys who have plenty of experience being the underdog, and yet have found ways to outperform this label in some of hockey’s biggest moments. For example, Ekholm started last season with the Edmonton Oilers going 3-9-1 and ended the season two goals shy of a Stanley Cup Championship. The Maple Leafs, after eight early playoff exits in a row, have definitely earned a partial playoff underdog label the question remains, can Nylander learn enough while playing alongside other former underdogs, to help Toronto overcome the title?
Matthews may be the <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/team-usa-preview-auston-matthews-looks-separate-peers-gold-or-bust">captain of team U.S.A</a>. and will have a different expectation in terms of leading compared to Marner and Nylander but there is still so much knowledge he can take from the rest of his teammates, including Jack Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk and his linemate, Jake Guentzel, who have all won the NHL’s biggest prize. While there will be tons of excitement for all three to represent their country’s jersey for the first time in a best-on-best situation (rightfully so), there will also be moments within the tournament that will test their will and strength, making them better players.
So, for Marner, Matthews and Nylander, not only do they get the chance to have their nation&#8217;s crest on their jersey for the first time, but they also get to share locker rooms with players who know how to win Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. One could walk away victorious from this whole thing, while the two in defeat, or if Finland upsets the whole thing, all three could end up losing. But whatever the outcome, all three will become better leaders, players and people not only for their nations but also for when they return to the NHL and rejoin the rest of the Leafs.
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When Mitch Marner walked into the dressing room on Monday, he was greeted by Team Canada’s 20 Stanley Cups.

<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2106" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="324"></div>
The 4 Nations tournament puts him in a locker room he’s never experienced before—one with exceptional Stanley Cup experience. Auston Matthews and William Nylander also found themselves next to similar levels of Stanley Cup greatness on Monday morning.
It’s no secret that even though the Toronto Maple Leafs have made the playoffs each of the last eight years, they’ve only advanced out of the first round once.
But what people don’t always remember is in those eight years, not once was there a best-on-best tournament. The last time NHLers represented their countries was in 2016 and the only current Toronto Maple Leafs to play were Auston Matthews, John Tavares and Morgan Rielly. Only one of these three will be competing in this week’s tournament. And even so, Matthews was a rookie in 2016. He played alongside young elites like Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, but none of them knew how to win in the NHL, yet.
Of course, the lack of best-on-best opportunity isn’t the reason the Maple Leafs haven’t won a Stanley Cup yet with this core, but imagine what they could have learned from hockey greats if they’d been given this chance before. They’ve missed out on an opportunity to gain knowledge on how to finish the job in the biggest moments. After eight years since the last international action (and after eight years of early playoff exits), these Maple Leaf stars finally get to be surrounded by winners at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Starting with Marner, this next week and a half marks a considerable leadership break. Instead of juggling Toronto’s assistant captain duties, he can sit back and listen to Sidney Crosby, Drew Doughty and arguably the two <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/marner-skating-with-mcdavid-on-top-line-for-team-canada-ahead-of-4-nations-face-off">best players in the world</a>, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon. All of them have played in Stanley Cup final games. Marner will be flooded with examples of what championship calibre play looks like, firsthand. As a player who has a tendency to let his game slip in the playoffs, he now gets a unique chance to experience how some of the greats deal with big moments, and hopefully, the opportunity to take with him lessons about the big stage that he can put into practice in the upcoming playoff rounds.
Nylander on <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/team-sweden-preview-william-nylander-expected-pivotal-role-in-offence">the other hand</a>, will be a little bit different than Marner, as he gets the honour of taking on more leadership by wearing an ‘A’ for team Sweden. Having an anchor of a captain like Victor Hedman, who has won back-to-back Stanley Cups, skating beside him will teach him one of the hardest abstracts to lock down in sports: How to win.
Now think about his other Swedish teammates, guys like Filip Forsberg, Erik Karlsson and Mattias Ekholm, guys who have plenty of experience being the underdog, and yet have found ways to outperform this label in some of hockey’s biggest moments. For example, Ekholm started last season with the Edmonton Oilers going 3-9-1 and ended the season two goals shy of a Stanley Cup Championship. The Maple Leafs, after eight early playoff exits in a row, have definitely earned a partial playoff underdog label the question remains, can Nylander learn enough while playing alongside other former underdogs, to help Toronto overcome the title?
Matthews may be the <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/team-usa-preview-auston-matthews-looks-separate-peers-gold-or-bust">captain of team U.S.A</a>. and will have a different expectation in terms of leading compared to Marner and Nylander but there is still so much knowledge he can take from the rest of his teammates, including Jack Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk and his linemate, Jake Guentzel, who have all won the NHL’s biggest prize. While there will be tons of excitement for all three to represent their country’s jersey for the first time in a best-on-best situation (rightfully so), there will also be moments within the tournament that will test their will and strength, making them better players.
So, for Marner, Matthews and Nylander, not only do they get the chance to have their nation's crest on their jersey for the first time, but they also get to share locker rooms with players who know how to win Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. One could walk away victorious from this whole thing, while the two in defeat, or if Finland upsets the whole thing, all three could end up losing. But whatever the outcome, all three will become better leaders, players and people not only for their nations but also for when they return to the NHL and rejoin the rest of the Leafs.
Sponsored by bet365
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4 Nations tournament will act as a playoff training ground for Maple Leaf superstars

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