Seven months ago, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ ‘Core Four’ era ended with the departure of Mitch Marner. Now, his long-awaited return has finally come, as his Vegas Golden Knights visit the Maple Leafs for the first time this season on Friday night.

Marner left behind a complicated legacy in Toronto, which he’s now forced to confront with his return. And while the fanbase will certainly voice their displeasure loud and clear at Scotiabank Arena, his former teammates are more nuanced in their feelings.

John Tavares played for seven seasons with Marner, as half of Toronto’s ‘Core Four.’ Ahead of Friday night’s match, he touched on what Marner’s return means, but said ultimately they have to come ready to win.

“You spend a large portion of your life, you know, your career … a lot of people make an impact on it and I know for me, I still am, always will be very grateful for that,” Tavares said, per Anna Dua. “I think there would be a lot of appreciation from him, but obviously … you put the gear on, you got to go there and play. So I’m sure there’ll be a lot of things that he’s feeling but … at the end of the day both sides once the puck drops, you’re trying to get in the flow of the game and compete and go out there and get two points.”

Tavares is all too familiar with facing a cold return, still booed by New York Islanders fans to this day for departing the team in free agency eight years ago.

Morgan Rielly had a similar sentiment to Tavares on Friday morning. The veteran defenceman played with Marner through his whole career in Toronto, but echoed that they are treating it like any other game.

“Just another game,” Rielly said, per Dua. “We played him once this year and I’m sure he’ll have emotions coming back, but ultimately for us we’re just focusing on going out there and playing … it’s important points.”

The Golden Knights took the first showdown between these two teams last week in Vegas, and now the Leafs will look to respond with a win of their own. Puck drops at 7 pm from Scotiabank Arena.

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