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Maple Leafs' Marner, Gardiner gush about Tyler Bozak


Tyler Bozak will be making his first trip to Toronto since being since the being let go when the St. Louis Blues battle the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. Bozak spent nine seasons playing for the club. Over the course of those that time, the Regina, Saskatchewan native was the assistant captain, and an integral part of the team’s depth at forward.

But most importantly to those who had the opportunity to play with him, he was a stellar teammate.

“He’s a great friend of mine, awesome teammate, player,” defenseman Jake Gardiner said of Bozak. “I mean he was just always chirping guys all the time, kind of like Mitch [Marner] that way. I’m sure Mitch learned from [Bozak], you know, making fun of guys constantly.”

And it would be hard to believe that Mitch Marner learned his chirps from anybody else. After playing alongside the former Maple Leaf for a good portion of his NHL career, he definitely picked up a couple of things.

Much like Tyler Bozak, Mitch Marner is not afraid to throw some chirps around, according to Jake Gardiner. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images)
Much like Tyler Bozak, Mitch Marner is not afraid to throw some chirps around, according to Jake Gardiner. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images)

“Him and JVR were obviously my linemates for a year and a bit, so there a big part of, I think, growing me into who I am now,” Marner said of James Van Riemsdyk and Bozak. “It’s obviously a little different seeing him once in a while, other than every day here, but, like I said, he meant a lot to this team when he was here.”

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