Senators' Brady Tkachuk gets candid about witnessing Mitch Marner drama unfold ahead of Golden Knights trade

Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk spoke about Mitch Marner’s trade to the Vegas Golden Knights. He joined hosts Nick Alberga and Jay Rosehill on The Leafs Nation’s "Simply Spiked" on Tuesday.

Tkachuk said he knows Marner through his Team USA captain, Auston Matthews, and mentioned that he wasn't aware of the new Golden Knights player's contract talks.

"I know (Auston) Matthews plays with Mitch, and I've just gotten to know Mitch over the last couple of years," Brady said. [7:55 onwards] "So obviously, I don't really know the ins and outs of negotiation."

"I know how my negotiation went. It's not all no sunshine and rainbows until something gets done, then it becomes great. So obviously they didn't agree. And, you know, Vegas could be the best thing for them. And it comes to a change. I bet change is hard, but I'll have to kind of wait and see him."

Marner was traded to Vegas by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first week of July. He signed an eight-year, $96 million deal before the trade. The contract has an average value of $12 million per season. Toronto received forward Nicolas Roy in return.

Marner said winning a Stanley Cup was his top reason for choosing Vegas.

"You want to be in a place where you want to win," Marner said, via NHL.com. "That’s the whole goal of why we do this. You want to hoist that Stanley Cup, and this team has shown that they can do it."

Mitch Marner had a career-high 102 points last season. He scored 27 goals and added 75 assists in 81 games. He also registered 13 points in 13 playoff games.

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Leafs GM Brad Treliving's comments on Mitch Marner

Toronto general manager Brad Treliving said the Maple Leafs needed to get value before Mitch Marner could leave in free agency. He praised Roy as a big, dependable center who can kill penalties.

"When a player of Mitch's magnitude moves away, that's never a fun day," Treliving said, via NHL.com. "But we were able to recoup a player who I think can really help us, ...we were able to recoup a player who fits a need for us."

Vegas has made the playoffs in seven of its eight NHL seasons. The team won the Stanley Cup in 2023. Mitch Marner joins a lineup with several proven players and looks forward to winning his first Cup there.