Jack Eichel Feels Mitch Marner Was Treated Unfairly in Toronto

The Stanley Cup Final is set to kick off Game 1 from Carolina on Tuesday night, and Vegas Golden Knights forward Mitch Marner's history with the Toronto Maple Leafs continues to make headlines.

This time, Jack Eichel has chimed in about Marner's time as a Maple Leaf, and opened up about the 'scar tissue' he sees on Marner from his tenure in Toronto. Eichel spoke to the media on Monday, and opened up about the relationship the two have formed since Marner joined the team last summer.

"As a teammate and a friend of his, and somebody that cares about him and his family, of course I do," Eichel said at Stanley Cup Final media day Monday. "I think the world of Mitch. Anybody that has negative or bad things to say about him, obviously I disagree with, because I think highly of him. Mitch has opened up to me about some of the things that he went through and I've opened up to him about some of the things I went through. I think it's probably good for both of us to have done that," he said. "Mitch is a big boy. He's got some scar tissue to show for it. I don't like people saying bad things about him because I care about the guy."

Marner leads the playoffs in scoring with 21 points and has quickly become the favorite out of the Western Conference to win the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP. Golden Knights' Kelly McCrimmon feels a deeper team in Vegas is helping support Marner more this time around.

"I think our team is deeper and a better team than what he had played on in Toronto. Not that Toronto didn't have real good teams. But you have to have that depth throughout your roster, because everyone's going to take their turn," McCrimmon said Monday. "Mitch is playing with tremendous confidence. He's really savoring the moment."

Marner admitted after Vegas won the West that he's thrilled in large part to all the 'dark times' he's been through in Toronto, which included death threats and having his address leaked online. Needless to say, he's happy with his decision to head to Vegas, and now the Golden Knights are just four wins away from hoisting Lord Stanley, so you have to give him credit - it appears Marner made the right decision.

Photo credit:  James Guillory-Imagn Images