Morgan Rielly’s name has hovered over the Toronto Maple Leafs for a long time, and this season could be the one that defines the next stretch of his career. The 32-year-old Vancouver native is the club’s longest-tenured player, a former fifth-overall pick in the 2012 Draft who debuted in 2013-14 and now sits 49 games away from 1,000 with the franchise.
If he gets there, Rielly would become just the sixth player in Maple Leafs history to reach that mark, joining George Armstrong (1188), Tim Horton (1184), Börje Salming (1099), Dave Keon (1062), and Ron Ellis (1034). He’s currently seventh on the list and only 30 games behind Leafs Senior Executive Advisor of Hockey Operations Mats Sundin.
That future looked less certain earlier this summer, when plenty around the team expected Rielly might be moved. Instead, he remains in Toronto, and the hope now is straightforward: a reset, a better fit, and a meaningful bounce-back season.
The last two years were rough. Under Craig Berube, Rielly was pushed into a heavier defensive load than his game naturally calls for.
He has always leaned more toward offense, but that style ran into a wall when the Leafs needed him to absorb a lot of responsibility in his own end. The result was a mismatch that showed up in his usage and, eventually, in the numbers.
He still logged more than 21 minutes a night and produced respectable offense, finishing with 41 points and then 36 points over the last two seasons. But he also finished those years at minus-26 combined between 2024 and 2026, and Toronto was asking him to function like a true No. 1 defenseman. That’s not the cleanest way to use him.
A better path may be much simpler: stop making him carry that kind of burden. Rielly looks more comfortable as a third- or fourth-defenceman type, one who spends more of his shifts in the offensive zone and gets power-play touches that let him attack the net instead of defending it.
The coaching change gives that idea a chance. With Berube out and Hiller now in place, the Leafs are hoping Rielly can settle back into a role that suits him better and get back to being an effective contributor.
There’s already an early sign of how that might look. Rielly has begun skating alongside newly acquired Darren Raddysh, and the pairing could help him quickly regain some traction. Raddysh is the kind of player who fits best when Toronto is already set up in the offensive end, and Rielly could work well as the supporting piece, moving the puck from the boards and feeding passes that create one-timer chances.
That setup also changes the power-play picture. Rielly’s role on the man advantage is expected to slide to the second unit, with Raddysh handling the quarterback duties on the first. That means fewer minutes overall, but also less strain, and that could be exactly what Rielly needs after being leaned on so heavily in recent seasons.
The key is usage. Toronto should be trying to keep him away from his own end as much as possible, giving more of the defensive-minded blueliners the tougher assignments. Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev fit that mold, and their presence should allow Rielly to spend more time in situations where his instincts actually help the team.
If the Leafs can keep him in the offensive and neutral zones with players like Auston Matthews, Gavin McKenna, John Tavares, and William Nylander, the points should come back. A season above 40 points looks well within reach, and 50 is not out of the question if the deployment matches the player.
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Maple Leafs May Have To Risk A Core Young Piece Here
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Matthew Knies and draft picks have surfaced as the kind of assets that could be involved, which is exactly the sort of price Toronto has to weigh carefully when chasing a player with upside. Nothing has been finalized or officially confirmed, and the talks remain fluid, but this is the kind of trade conversation that forces a club to decide how much of its young core it is willing to risk for a potential swing. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Fans Are Suddenly Watching A Strange Marchenko Trade Rumor
Morgan Riellys situation is one of the more interesting wrinkles around the Maple Leafs as the season approaches, because Jim Hiller appears ready to give the veteran defenseman a different look. Rielly has struggled to find the right fit in recent seasons, but the new role is expected to put him in a position that better matches his offensive strengths and gives Toronto a cleaner read on what it still has in one of its most established blue-liners.
Elsewhere in the hockey rumor mill, a much stranger Boston-related thread has started making the rounds after social media users noticed Bruins players and Kirill Marchenko following each other on Instagram. It is the kind of detail that can send fans into overdrive even when the most likely explanation is pure coincidence, but it has still been enough to get people wondering whether there is anything more to the chatter. [Read more 🡒]