Ex-Toronto Maple Leafs General Manager Brian Burke recently appeared on the radio, making a controversial yet accurate statement. The Leafs made a mistake in firing Burke, one of their best GMs, and replacing him with Dave Nonis, who turned out to be one of their worst.

Burke’s greatness lay in his understanding of parity and the necessity of taking significant risks to stand out. His bold moves, such as acquiring Chris Pronger, the Sedin twins, and Phil Kessel, exemplify his strategy. Last month, I re-assessed Burke’s tenure in Toronto and found a newfound appreciation for his bold approach.

However, this week, Burke made his annual suggestion that the Leafs should trade William Nylander. Previously, I dismissed this as sour grapes, but this year, Burke’s point holds more weight.

Mitch Marner is a significantly better player than William Nylander. Marner excels offensively and defensively, is younger, faster, and smarter. While Nylander is a great player, Marner is a no-doubt Hall of Famer who could end his career as the second-best player in Leafs history, behind Auston Matthews.

If the Leafs need to make changes to their Core Four and alter their strategy, trading Nylander makes sense over Marner. Despite Nylander recently signing a new deal and being loved by the team and fans, trading him is reasonable. Marner is on another level, and this fact should be recognized.

Trading Nylander would be challenging due to his high salary and no-movement clause, but it could be done if necessary. Personally, I would prefer to keep both players. However, if forced to make changes, Marner is not the player to trade. The notion of trading Marner is absurd.

Mitch Marner is untouchable on any well-managed team. Burke’s annual advice is spot on this time: Nylander should be the one to go if changes are needed.