Mitch Marner was raised an unabashed Maple Leafs fan.

He knows Max Domi has a million stories about growing up in the Toronto dressing room, but doesn't really bug his London linemate about it.

"We don't talk about it too much," Marner, the OHL's scoring leader said.

That doesn't stop Domi, the Knights captain and world junior hero, from teasing Marner incessantly about his predictions for this summer's NHL draft.

"He always jokes around with me about getting drafted by the Leafs," Marner said this week. "He likes to have a lot of fun with that. We joke about the draft (a lot)."

Domi, the Arizona first rounder, is a savvy pro hockey observer. He follows the big-league standings and knows how the lottery system works.

Toronto stinks this season but its chances of landing Erie wunderkind Connor McDavid with the No. 1 overall pick is still a bit of a stretch.

In reality, the Leafs, at this point, are closer to "Falling in a Ditch For Mitch" than bottoming out at the "Dishonour For Connor" stage.

And that's just fine with the Knights star.

"That would be a dream come true for me," Marner, the 17-year-old from Thornhill, said. "Growing up in Toronto, everyone always dreams of playing and winning a Stanley Cup in their hometown, for them. With the struggle the Leafs have been through the past couple of years and the playoff slumps they've had, you want to be the guy who goes in there and helps them get to the post-season and takes them as far as you can.

"You want to be the guy that puts a 'C' on their sweater and wins a Cup in Toronto. It would be a great accomplishment and then, you will forever be a hero in that town."

Most draft experts have Marner in the first 10 picks, but not in the top five. Still, it would be eyebrow-raising to see the Leafs, if he's available whenever their turn comes up, passing on his talent.

Former Knights GM Mark Hunter, Toronto's new director of player personnel, looked like a genius for taking Marner in the first round of the OHL draft two years ago. Nearly everyone else passed on him and most of those teams have been kicking themselves.

Dave Morrison, a Londoner, is the Leafs director of amateur scouting. He knows Marner's game and abilities inside out.

Here's one more positive -- the kid roots so hard for the Leafs, he's in denial.

"They're just in a little rough patch here right now," Marner said. "It's not a big deal. Whenever my family is all together, we love watching the Leafs play."

Marner's favourite all-time Leaf is Doug Gilmour even though the only game he could possibly remember the old No. 93 playing in blue-and-white was his last, in 2003, when he was injured colliding with ex-Knight Dave Lowry. The Kingston GM watched Marner play for Don Mills in midget and thought his game resembled his own.

"I loved how (Gilmour) used his speed," Marner said. "He also wasn't one of the bigger guys but he would sacrifice his body every shift."

The biggest knock on the young Knight, who has grown to the 5-foot-11 range, is his weight. He is light and he may never have the leg power of Sidney Crosby or Domi, but has a marathoner's lungs and second-to-none vision.

"I think I got faster this year," Marner said. "I worked on my speed in the summer off-ice and I think it's showing on-ice with my speed and leg strength this year."

Put tools aside for a moment and consider this: at the rate he has scored in his first two years, Marner will surpass Corey Perry as the Knights' all-time career points leader if he plays four seasons.

Still, he needs a strong finishing kick to win the league race this year. When Domi and Co. don't bug him about the Leafs, they're needling him about how much ground the astonishing McDavid has gained

"They tell me every day," said Marner, a dozen up on McDavid (who has 11 games to go), "so I know."

The NHL draft, of course, remains a mystery. He would love to be a Leaf, but he won't be crushed if it isn't to be.

"It would be awesome to play (for the Coyotes), too," Marner said. "They have (Knights linemates Christian Dvorak and Domi in the fold). To go to their camp and already know guys like that would be great. Here in junior, our line already has the chemistry fully developed. But the draft's a while away and there's still a lot of hockey left to be played here.

"I'm still thinking about winning a playoff round and winning a Memorial Cup with these guys."

He's planning one parade at a time.

ryan.pyette@sunmedia.ca

Twitter.com/RyanatLFPress

THREE'S COMPANY

(Heading into London's Friday night home game against Guelph, here's a look at the top scoring trios in the OHL this season. Not including Thursday's games)

105 goals, 298 points -- Marner, Dvorak, Domi (London)

109 goals, 281 points -- Blandisi, Labanc, Mangiapane (Barrie)

110 goals, 279 points -- Strome, McDavid, DeBrincat (Erie)