Treliving insists Marner drama isn't distraction: 'We want Mitch here'

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving attempted to mitigate some of the drama surrounding Mitch Marner after it was revealed the star winger declined to waive his no-trade clause in a potential deal for Mikko Rantanen before the trade deadline.

"We want Mitch here for a long time," Treliving said, per The Athletic's Joshua Kloke.

"It's not a distraction," the executive added. "But I said, we think the world of Mitch. But it's just not a question we're going to get into every day. We've dealt with it here. We move forward. We want Mitch. We're all focused on the next 19 (games) to go. So I just wanted to come and address you on it so you don't have to track me down, and we'll move on, OK?"

Marner is an unrestricted free agent this summer. His camp has been reportedly unwilling to negotiate an extension in-season despite the Leafs' wishes to get a deal done.

Marner declined to elaborate on the situation following Saturday's loss to the Colorado Avalanche. The 27-year-old maintained his focus is on the rest of the season.

Rantanen reportedly had several suitors but was ultimately dealt to the Dallas Stars. He signed an eight-year, $96-million extension as part of the move, making Marner far and away the most talented free-agent forward this summer.

Marner has earned $10.903 million in each of the last six seasons and is likely in line for a raise with the salary cap expected to balloon over the next few years. He's currently seventh in league scoring with 79 points in 62 games this season and has notched 718 points in nine campaigns since the Leafs drafted him fourth overall in 2015.

Toronto is projected to have more than $27 million in cap space in the offseason, according to PuckPedia. Veteran John Tavares is also a UFA this summer, while Matthew Knies is the club's most prominent RFA.