Toronto's Mitch Marner scores fastest goal in Maple Leafs history

Jan. 3 (UPI) -- Toronto forward Mitch Marner made history in the Maple Leafs' 4-3 loss against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday.

Marner scored seven seconds into the contest, becoming the fastest player to record a goal to start a game in the franchise's history.

Wild center Eric Staal battled for the game's opening faceoff and tried to work the puck to a defenseman. The puck slid into the Wild's defensive zone and Toronto winger Connor Brown deflected a pass off a defender's skate.

Marner grabbed the deflection and cut between three defenders and drained a back-handed shot past Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk.

The quick tally from Marner broke Hockey Hall of Famer Charlie Conacher's record of seven seconds back on Feb. 6, 1932. His goal beat Conacher's record by a few milliseconds.

Ted Kennedy scored eight seconds into a game on Oct. 24, 1953, which ranks third in team history. Tim Horton lit up the lamp 10 seconds into a contest on Feb. 4, 1965, the fourth-fastest goal in franchise history.

Marner added another goal 5:38 into the first period, giving him two goals in the first six minutes of the game.

The 21-year-old Marner was notably missing from this year's All-Star team, with most projecting him to be a lock for the annual game. He entered Thursday's game with 53 points this season, which ranked sixth in the NHL.

The Maple Leafs (26-12-2) take on the Vancouver Canucks (20-19-4) this Saturday.