<p>The <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/combinations">Toronto Maple Leafs</a>&#8216; season came to an end in painful fashion on Sunday night, and much like it&#8217;s been the case in the past, Mitch Marner faced some scrutiny for his performance in the dying games of the series.</p>
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<p>While he tallied an assist on Auston Matthews&#8217; goal to kick off their Game 6 win, he had a horrible Game 5, and Game 7 wasn&#8217;t <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/toronto-maple-leafs-fans-clear-tired-status-quo-another-game-7-loss">much different</a>, save for some extra yelling at the team to pick things up. Everybody, including Marner&#8217;s harshest critics, would prefer a world where he stepped up and helped the Leafs get to the Conference Final for the first time, but it didn&#8217;t play out that way, and now there will be some tough questions asked about <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/reports-mitch-marner-appears-likely-test-free-agency">his future with the team</a> as he faces free agency.</p>
<p>Regardless of the hectic month he&#8217;s going to have in front of him off the ice, Marner said that giving any concrete answer so soon after the loss is not going to be easy.</p>
<p>&#8220;I think like everyone, saddened, devastated in a way, yeah, I mean it&#8217;s not easy,&#8221; Marner said when asked how the loss and the contract situation has impacted him and his family. &#8220;It&#8217;s hard. I&#8217;ve love being here, I&#8217;m so grateful, but I haven&#8217;t talked to my family yet. It&#8217;s still so fresh.&#8221;</p>
<p>Marner had some big moments throughout the playoff run, but with one assist and zero goals in the final three games against the Florida Panthers, it wasn&#8217;t enough to propel the Leafs to the second round. He insists that even though the score was lopsided, the team was prepared for the game – they just let it get away from them.</p>
<p>&#8220;I think just the momentum around the team, the vibe of the team,&#8221; Marner said about what stuck out about this season&#8217;s loss compared to previous elimination games. &#8220;Everything about that morning and that day was high energy, high octane. It didn&#8217;t feel like we were nervous at all. We were excited about the opportunity in the moment, and that sucks. You want to still be playing hockey right now and want to be getting ready for a hockey game, and sometimes it doesn&#8217;t go your way.&#8221;</p>
<p>The term &#8216;outside noise&#8217; always comes into play when the Leafs are struggling, especially in the postseason. Heck, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice and forward Matthew Tkachuk both said that the Leafs would be a better team if not for the amount of heat they take from the media and the fanbase when things aren&#8217;t going well. But Marner and the Leafs all shared the same sentiment regarding pressure – it&#8217;s a part of the game, and not something that&#8217;s affected one way or another by playing in Toronto.</p>
<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s pressure everywhere&#8221; Marner said, rejecting the notion that outside noise gets to them as a group. &#8220;Doesn&#8217;t matter where you are. There&#8217;s always pressure, and we put the most pressure on ourselves, we hold ourselves to high accountability. We want to win every single year, and it&#8217;s hard to do. Like I said, we hold ourselves to some high accountability. The pressure from the outside doesn&#8217;t bother us too much, it&#8217;s more about what you put on yourself.&#8221;</p>
<p>Whether Marner&#8217;s future is with the Maple Leafs or not, he&#8217;s holding steady on the fact that you can&#8217;t change the past, as painful as that is to accept.</p>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s tough to look back and try and change things. That&#8217;s what hurts the most, looking back and saying what if and what you could do. There&#8217;s nothing you can change, it&#8217;s happened, and that&#8217;s what sucks the most.&#8221;</p>
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The <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/combinations">Toronto Maple Leafs</a>' season came to an end in painful fashion on Sunday night, and much like it's been the case in the past, Mitch Marner faced some scrutiny for his performance in the dying games of the series.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2106" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="324"></div>
While he tallied an assist on Auston Matthews' goal to kick off their Game 6 win, he had a horrible Game 5, and Game 7 wasn't <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/toronto-maple-leafs-fans-clear-tired-status-quo-another-game-7-loss">much different</a>, save for some extra yelling at the team to pick things up. Everybody, including Marner's harshest critics, would prefer a world where he stepped up and helped the Leafs get to the Conference Final for the first time, but it didn't play out that way, and now there will be some tough questions asked about <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/reports-mitch-marner-appears-likely-test-free-agency">his future with the team</a> as he faces free agency.

Regardless of the hectic month he's going to have in front of him off the ice, Marner said that giving any concrete answer so soon after the loss is not going to be easy.

"I think like everyone, saddened, devastated in a way, yeah, I mean it's not easy," Marner said when asked how the loss and the contract situation has impacted him and his family. "It's hard. I've love being here, I'm so grateful, but I haven't talked to my family yet. It's still so fresh."

Marner had some big moments throughout the playoff run, but with one assist and zero goals in the final three games against the Florida Panthers, it wasn't enough to propel the Leafs to the second round. He insists that even though the score was lopsided, the team was prepared for the game – they just let it get away from them.

"I think just the momentum around the team, the vibe of the team," Marner said about what stuck out about this season's loss compared to previous elimination games. "Everything about that morning and that day was high energy, high octane. It didn't feel like we were nervous at all. We were excited about the opportunity in the moment, and that sucks. You want to still be playing hockey right now and want to be getting ready for a hockey game, and sometimes it doesn't go your way."

The term 'outside noise' always comes into play when the Leafs are struggling, especially in the postseason. Heck, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice and forward Matthew Tkachuk both said that the Leafs would be a better team if not for the amount of heat they take from the media and the fanbase when things aren't going well. But Marner and the Leafs all shared the same sentiment regarding pressure – it's a part of the game, and not something that's affected one way or another by playing in Toronto.

"There's pressure everywhere" Marner said, rejecting the notion that outside noise gets to them as a group. "Doesn't matter where you are. There's always pressure, and we put the most pressure on ourselves, we hold ourselves to high accountability. We want to win every single year, and it's hard to do. Like I said, we hold ourselves to some high accountability. The pressure from the outside doesn't bother us too much, it's more about what you put on yourself."

Whether Marner's future is with the Maple Leafs or not, he's holding steady on the fact that you can't change the past, as painful as that is to accept.

"It's tough to look back and try and change things. That's what hurts the most, looking back and saying what if and what you could do. There's nothing you can change, it's happened, and that's what sucks the most."

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