Marcus Foligno

Foligno was selected by the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)'s Sudbury Wolves in the second round, 39th overall, in the 2007 OHL Priority Selection,[2] the same team that drafted his older brother, Nick. After two seasons with the club, Foligno was selected in the fourth round, 104th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.[3] Foligno spent an additional two seasons with the Wolves, with his best coming during the 2010–11 season, in which he recorded 23 goals and 59 points in 47 games.[4]

Foligno in February 2013.

Foligno agreed to terms on an entry-level professional contract with the Buffalo Sabres on May 25, 2011. He began play with the Sabres' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Rochester Americans, in the 2011–12 season.[5][6][7] Foligno was called up to the Sabres on December 19, 2011, and made his NHL debut on December 20, playing against the Ottawa Senators, the team his brother Nick Foligno was playing with at the time. Marcus Foligno's second career start came March 10, 2012, again against his brother and the Ottawa Senators. Foligno scored his first career goal at 14:06 in the third period, which tied the game; Buffalo eventually won the game in a shootout.[8]

Like his brother Nick, Marcus Foligno used their father's "Foligno Leap" as his first career goal celebration. However, on Marcus' first goal, he was unsure he actually scored. As a result, Marcus used the "Leap" on his next goal in Buffalo on March 14, 2012.[9]

Foligno broke the family tradition and did not choose the numbers 17 (worn by his father) or 71 (worn by his brother). Upon being drafted by the Sabres, he elected to wear number 82 (assigned to him at camp) instead of his father's number 17. Foligno was reassigned to the Americans immediately before the 2012–13 NHL lockout. However, this changed once he was traded to the Minnesota Wild, where he chose to wear the number 17.[10]

On June 27, 2016, the Sabres issued a qualifying offer to Foligno.[11] He was signed to a one-year contract on July 14, 2016.[12] In the 2016–17 season, Foligno scored a career-best 13 goals in a checking-line role to match his 23 points from the previous season.[13]

As a restricted free agent, on June 30, 2017, Foligno was traded (along with Tyler Ennis and a third-round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft) to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Marco Scandella, Jason Pominville and a fourth-round pick in 2018.[14] On September 14, the Wild signed Foligno to a four-year, $11.5 million contract extension worth $2.875 million annually.[15] Foligno was hospitalized on October 12, 2017, after taking a punch to the face from Chicago Blackhawks forward John Hayden during a fight in Minnesota's 5–2 win. According to The Athletic's Michael Russo, he may have suffered a "broken facial bone" as a result of the hit.[16]

On January 12, 2021, Foligno signed a three-year, $9.3 million extension with the Wild.