BOSTON — To tell a story about Mitch Marner, let’s first tell a story about Brad Marchand, his nemesis-turned-teammate.
Marchand was roughly Marner’s age and looking for the most lucrative contract of his career when the 2016 World Cup of Hockey rolled around.
Not only was Marchand selected to wear the Maple Leaf and represent his country in his first professional best-on-best, but the undersized winger also had a heckuva tournament.
He killed penalties. He was elevated to Canada’s top six. He produced alongside captain Sidney Crosby. And he orchestrated the trophy-clinching goal.
Those of us on the outside called it a coming-out party. Marchand, however, circles that event as his greatest moment of internal growth along his NHL journey.
“The biggest thing it did for me was, it changed my mindset,” Marchand begins, embarking on a thoughtful reflection. “Your mind is such a powerful thing. It can propel you to achieve incredible things, and it can really hinder you and hold you back from accomplishing things.”
At the time of his invite to the ’16 World Cup, Marchand had already won a Stanley Cup. He’d scored 37 goals and 61 points once. But he had viewed the NHL talent-scape in tiers — and himself a notch below the elite.
“Look across the league. You got your McDavids and Crosbys and MacKinnons, all that. And then you got your mid-tier guys. I always viewed myself as looking at those guys as the best in the world — untouchables,” Marchand continues. “And when I got to play as part of that team, I realized that one of the biggest things is that they know that. They believe that, every time they step on the ice, they’re the best. They have that confidence.
“Once I realized I could play at that level, my mindset just changed. And I started believing. Every time I stepped on the ice — whether it was true or not — I would tell myself I was the best player. And I had that mindset. A little bit of an internal arrogance. But it just helped me, in games, get to another level.
“It helped me get to a different level that I never thought I would reach.”
Ironically, the Boston Bruins star’s confidence jolt took place in Toronto.
Equally ironic: Marner’s “Iggy!” moment — setting up the world’s best player for a gold-medal-winning overtime goal — unfolded in Boston.
Now, when the Toronto Maple Leafs fly to Beantown, when they walk past the Zamboni entrance, Marner can choose to associate this place not with three gutting Game 7 defeats but with his most splendid and clutch victory as a pro.
“Felt good. Can’t lie,” Marner said Thursday in the champagne-soaked visitors’ room, a gleaming, golden 4 Nations Face-Off medal dangling from his neck.
“Confidence. Just belief, also, in a way. So, I’ll try to take into it the rest of the season and then going forward.”
In a short tournament, Marner stood tall.
His Crosby-assisted overtime goal in Game 1 looms even larger in retrospect. Because Sweden was the only country not to lose in regulation, Marner’s clock-freezer at 6:06 in 3-on-3 stood as the difference between getting a rematch with Team USA or cheering on the Swedes.
Although Marner’s play quieted during the fight-filled first battle against the Americans, and he was dropped off Connor McDavid’s line to the bottom six, he dug in and rebounded when it mattered most.
Marner’s slip pass to Sam Bennett — another fierce Atlantic Division foe — helped tie the championship game and convince his coach that he was worthy of an in-game promotion. Marner’s difficult skate-to-stick-to-slot pass for Connor McDavid sealed the deal.
“Mitch had legs tonight — and that kid can make plays,” Team Canada coach Jon Cooper said post-game. “He just needed one chance to make a play, and he did. It comes down to a gut feel and how the guys are going.”
Hero McDavid was quick to credit the coach for his on-the-fly adjustment and Marner for his on-the-rim feed.
“Our line had a bit of a tough night. Just didn’t work. Wasn’t able to generate much. But throw Mitch up there, and we find a way to contribute at the end there. And that’s all that matters,” said McDavid, who wants fans to recognize the assist.
“I mean, it’s so subtle. Your average hockey fan is not going to appreciate how impressive that is — to pick the puck up off the wall like that, so calmly, and make a great play. Have his head up, draw two guys to him, and dish in the middle. It’s a great play. Fans might not appreciate how good that is.”
Marner, 27, has been competing against McDavid “a lot in my lifetime,” since they were wonderkids in the GTHL.
“Really never got to play with each other,” Marner said. “And that’s something we talked about coming into this tournament. Then, funny enough, first practice, we’re on the same line together. We’re talking how we want to play and stuff like that. And, yeah, it’s nice to be on his side now, instead of against him for a lot of years. It’s gonna be a really cool moment to look back on that and enjoy that with my family and with him.”
When Marner’s pass to McDavid proved to be the tourney’s final one, when the twine behind Connor Hellebuyck bent and all the Canadians’ gloves and sticks went airborne, Marner caught a glimpse of his mom, Bonnie, and dad, Paul, in the stands.
“They were just hopping around like three-year-olds,” Marner said. “It’s special. It means a lot.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to celebrate something hockey-wise, winning.”
Marner is in his ninth NHL season. He has yet to savour more than five wins in a single post-season. He repped his country at one world juniors and finished sixth, one world championship and settled for silver.
“Unfortunately, times before when I’ve worn the Canadian jersey, we haven’t had as great success as we did in this tournament. So, feels good,” Marner said.
“It’s cool to win something and hoist something.”
Even cooler to do it in Boston — and to play an integral role in a high-stakes victory.
“This is a tough building. It’s a tough building to win in regular season and playoffs,” McDavid said. “He understands that. And it’s great to see him not only win but be a massive part of it. He made two beautiful plays on two of the goals. Well-deserved for him.”
The hope now, for long-suffering Maple Leafs fans, is that Marner can use his Team Canada experience, his time immersed in a room free of doubt and panic, in the same way that Marchand once did.
That his confidence can soar. That his first big-stage star turn is only the hint of more clutch to come, with Toronto’s playoffs around the corner and the Olympics not so far beyond.
“It’s nice,” Marner said, “to be on the other side of things and win this one.”
Now that Mitch Marner has broken through to the other side, how wonderful it would be if he believed he could stay there.
