What Could Morgan Rielly’s Next Year With The Maple Leafs Look Like?.
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to look deeply at who’s bringing the team closer to success and who isn’t. After another season that ended in bitter disappointment and flat-out humiliation at the hands of the Florida Panthers, the Maple Leafs will almost certainly have some significant changes. While the focus is on the future of UFA star forwards Mitch Marner and John Tavares, the future of another Leafs cornerstone – defenseman Morgan Rielly – is also a topic of speculation. To be sure, there would be no speculation about Rielly’s future if he had a solid playoff performance. He didn’t. Despite starting about 63 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone this post-season, the Leafs were outchanced and outscored when he was on the ice, according to naturalstattrick.com. Although he had four points in the first three games of their second-round series, the offensive blueliner was held off the scoresheet in the other four. It felt like the opposition just kept beating him. For someone paid as Toronto’s top defenseman, who carries a $7.5-million cap hit, the downturn in Rielly’s play has to be worrisome for Leafs GM Brad Treliving.
That’s why there’s speculation about whether or not it’s time for Toronto to cut the cord with Rielly – or vice-versa. Either way, it’s unlikely Rielly is being traded anytime soon. The 31-year-old has another five seasons left on his contract, and he has a full no-move clause, guaranteeing himself the ultimate decision on where he plays until the summer of 2030 unless the team buys out his contract. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported last week that Rielly is going nowhere right now. And When asked about the idea of a change of scenery, Rielly told reporters on May 20 he’s not thinking about that. Even if Rielly did want to turn the page on his Leafs career and go somewhere else, his contract will be an obstacle to a trade, at least if the Leafs want to acquire anything other than cap space for him. The much likelier solution for now is that Rielly comes back to Toronto to begin next season, and if things continue to not go well for him, Leafs brass could revisit a possible trade at that point. Rielly will have a full season with veteran Brandon Carlo as his full-time partner. That increased familiarity could help him have a rebound season. And Rielly no doubt wants to resuscitate his reputation with the Leafs. As Toronto’s longest-tenured player, Rielly has spent his best years with the Blue & White, and he’s handled the pressure of Leafs Land about as well as anyone could.
Still, the kind of criticism Rielly is encountering now is unlike anything he’s faced since he broke into the NHL in 2013-14. He’s not at the Larry Murphy-scapegoat level, but another subpar season will only ratchet up the dismay Leafs fans will have for Rielly’s financial predicament. It wasn’t long ago that Rielly was putting up 50 to 70 points in a season to compensate for any defensive inconsistencies. He had 58 points last season, 68 in 2021-22, 72 in 2018-19 and 52 the year before that. He had 41 points in 82 games this season, a drop of 17 from the year prior. While his best years could well be behind him now, on a deeper Leafs defense corps, he doesn’t have to do all the heavy lifting. And if he can’t show he’s worthy of his contract, fan frustration will continue to grow. In all our years of covering the Maple Leafs, we haven’t encountered a more decent standup guy than Rielly. He’s maintained a humility about him that other NHL players may have lost playing in the spotlight of Toronto. But as the competitive bar has been set higher for the Leafs, Rielly must rise with it.
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