Mitch Marner speaks about 'dark moments' during his time with Toronto Maple Leafs

Mitch Marner has finally opened up about the "dark moments" he supposedly went through while playing with the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

The former Maple Leafs star is just days removed from getting eliminated in the Stanley Cup Final, as the Vegas Golden Knights fell in six games to the Carolina Hurricanes. It's another tough moment for Marner, who is coming off the longest and most productive playoff run of his career. 

Toronto fans were keeping a keen eye on Marner during the playoffs. 

After reaching the Stanley Cup Final, Marner caused quite a stir in Toronto after telling Sportsnet's Shawn McKenzie that he had suffered through some "dark moments" while with the Maple Leafs, but refused to go into detail. 

As he went through his end-of-the-year press conference in Las Vegas on Tuesday, the 29-year-old elaborated on what he meant. 

"When I said that, mental health is a super important thing to me," Marner said. "I've been really trying to take care of my mental health probably for the last five years or so. 

"There were some really dark moments [in Toronto]. The thought of playing hockey was really tough in a lot of ways. It was just a dark kind of vibe, a dark hole in a way."

I asked Mitch Marner if he could elaborate on the “dark days” comment he made during Media Day.

Poignant response about mental health: pic.twitter.com/adEHrBsWla

— Danny Webster (@DannyWebster21) June 16, 2026

There is no question that Marner faced an enormous amount of pressure while playing in his hometown. 

It seems as though he struggled with those expectations, and it didn't help when his home address was leaked to the public following last season's Game 7 loss to the Florida Panthers. 

Marner said he had plenty of support while playing in Toronto, with both his teammates and family being there for him. He also said that he has been working to disconnect himself from what people say about him on social media. 

"I'm really thankful I had some unbelievable teammates around me in Toronto that I was able to talk to, express myself," Marner said. "A lot of us are addicted to the social media aspect of things, seeing a lot of comments, seeing a lot of things about yourself. 

"I've tried to check myself out of that in the last two or three years, try to get off of it, try to get away from it. I think that's helped in a lot of ways." 

Mental health is a topic that has been getting a lot more attention in recent years, and the taboo is slowly starting to go away. While Marner recognized the progress that society has made with mental health, he still feels that some things are lacking. 

He wants to make sure that he not only prioritizes it for himself, but for loved ones as well. 

"I think it's really important to always check in on your friends, your family," Marner said. "I think it's a thing that in this day and age, now it gets talked about, but I think it's still overlooked in a lot of ways.

"People want you around, that's what I always say. People want you in their life, you should never be afraid to talk about your emotions, talk about your fears, and what you're going through."