Even Maple Leafs fans can't argue with these stats highlighting Mitch Marner's impact

You know, I was thinking about Friday's game between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Obviously, this would be the first game back for Mitch Marner, who left the Maple Leafs for the Golden Knights during the summer. You know what's coming in Friday's mammoth (not from Utah) matchup between the two teams.

Booing. A tribute video. Reunions with old teammates. It's sure to be an electric time.

But what Maple Leafs fans don't know is that Marner's actually doing immaculate work with his new team. TSN's Travis Yost had some eye-opening stats that revealed how he's uplifting his teammates. We're not just talking about Jack Eichel and Mark Stone here. We're talking about everyone.

Ah, I can still hear those fans talking about how Marner is completely useless without Auston Matthews. They'll harp on about how he's a glorified assist merchant, setting up his teammates for juicy scoring opportunities.

"BuT mItCh MaRnE-"

Shut it.

The stats don't lie and they show that the former "Core Four" member is making an impressive impact. When you even impact the lower-line players and depth pieces, you know you're doing something right.

How much of a positive impact is Mitch Marner having on the Vegas Golden Knights?

When looking at the impact that Marner has on the Golden Knights, you can look at how well he lifts his teammates. Two of the top five lines this season (minimum 100 minutes) in expected goals have the "Core Four" member on the line (stats from MoneyPuck). Obviously, the Marner-Stone-Howden line is atop the list with 68.3% expected goals. But there's a surprising unit that sits in third place.

That would be the Dorofeyev-Hertl-Marner line, which has an expected goals rate of 62.5%. While they're in the middle of the pack regarding expected goals for (eight), they're much better defensively with an expected goals against of 4.8. Without Marner, how can the line make up for their defensive tendencies in the two-way game?

The same goes for the goals against per 60 minutes, with the trio having the fewest goals against in this category (1.32). Suddenly, Dorofeyev is better in one-on-one situations. He's better at deterring attackers from getting the inside, putting them in uncomfortable situations. All of that comes with having a solid two-way player on your line.

But the line has also been productive in scoring outright, tying the Stone-Howden-Marner line for third place in goals% (63.6%). Having two of the leading goal scorers (21 goals each entering Friday) makes life easier, with both players trending towards career-highs.

The Golden Knights depth will be put to the test against a rising Toronto Maple Leafs team

It's never easy to face off against a savage crowd that wants your blood after a bitter divorce. You have a legion of Maple Leafs fans who want to burn you with the jerseys they're throwing in the pile. However, there's a way out for the former "Core Four" member.

If he can lean on his pieces (i.e. Dorofeyev and Hertl), the Golden Knights will walk away with a key win on a rough East Coast trip. Points will be at a premium, as proven by their deflating loss to the Boston Bruins on Thursday.

Still, what better way to kick off the winning than by silencing the ScotiaBank crowd? It's all there for Marner to achieve on Friday as he looks to show why playing in Las Vegas is much better. Who knows? He might even get a goal and uplift his teammates further.