Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly has been the team’s top defender for a number of seasons. He has been given a heavy work load in both being the top producer from the backend, logging top minutes each season and continues to cement himself as an all-time great defender for the team.
Last season, it looked like things started to catch up to him as he was off his game at certain points. From questionable reads to being inconsistent as the point man on the power play, Rielly was definitely hit or miss.
This season, Rielly looks more rejuvenated and motivated with his on-ice play. While he’s not an elite puck-moving defenseman like Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche or Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks, he continues to be a key piece to the team’s success. In the third year of an eight-year deal, Rielly may not be a high-end producer, but he has come up big and found another gear to his game.
Rielly’s Offensive Numbers
While he may not put up 80-90 points, Rielly has been a consistent and effective producer for the Maple Leafs. Since the 2017-18 season, he ranks sixth in defenseman scoring with 362 points in 493 games. Last season alone, he finished 11th with 58 points and is currently ranked 13th this season with nine points. When playing against elite competition PuckIQ, he has a goals for percentage at 75% which is impressive.
Even though Reilly may not be at the top of the standings, he’s consistent at producing at a reasonable pace. The one thing that many criticized about his game was that he was always a pass first defenseman and was too patient when holding onto the puck. This season, he appears to be taking advantage of his shooting opportunities and when he has the space, he’s going to make it count.
Rielly appears to be doing a better job at finding the open space and making himself a threat by getting more medium danger shots as he has 13 of them this season. He had 31 last season, closing in on the half way point to that mark. As a result, he has four goals already this season. Three more and he will match last season’s total with seven and is on pace for a 23-goal season.
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His strong offensive start has his shooting percentage at 13.8%, the highest it’s ever been in his career. While it may not be sustainable, it’s great to see that Rielly is not only getting better looks on net, but is also capitalizing on his opportunities. The best example was his recent goal on the power play against the Boston Bruins. He’s great at setting up plays and he’s effective in doing so, but if he’s going to be more of a threat, he can’t pass up prime shooting opportunities.
Rielly Surrounded by Strong Depth
If there’s one thing that stands out with Rielly, is that he looks to have more pep in his step and isn’t burdened with a heavy work load. He’s always been a great skater that can quickly move in transition. This season he has more energy and pace to his game. His overall game has taken a big step in both zones, but Rielly has a few things that’s helping him out.
The last time Rielly didn’t lead the team in ice time per game was in 2017-18. Last season, he averaged 23:44, which is down to 21:10. The most minutes has gone to both Jake McCabe and Oliver Ekman-Larsson with seconds separating all three defenders. Playing roughly two minutes less is keeping him fresh and being more of a threat at even strength, with him and Ekman-Larsson rotating as the quarterback on the top power play.
Rielly has moved back onto the top power play as he’s becoming more effective with his shooting and playmaking, so those minutes can go up. He’s shown he can handle it, but lowering his minutes slightly looks to be playing a big part.
Not only that, this is probably the best depth that has been surrounding Rielly in some time with a balance of both strong defensive play and mobility. With McCabe, Ekman-Larsson and Chris Tanev in the top-four, the Maple Leafs look steady within their own zone. Rielly has played with both the new additions in Tanev and Ekman-Larsson and the results are there offensively at five-on-five.
| Statistic | Rielly w/ Tanev | Rielly w/ Ekman-Larsson |
| xGF% | 61.75% | 53.96% |
| SCF% | 54.02% | 54.65% |
| HDCF% | 64.52% | 57.50% |
No matter who he plays with, Rielly is getting results and showing great chemistry. While the defensive group is an aging one, there’s a balance and head coach Craig Berube has two pairings that he can rely on and can help Rielly out to split the work load. That alone is beneficial at key points in the game so he can be fresh and rotate in and out of key situations.
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Whether it be the increased volume of shots and capitalizing on his opportunities or having strong depth around him, Rielly has been noticeable for the Maple Leafs on the backend as he looks to have found another gear in his game. He’s been a corner stone player for a long time and he has continued that with his strong start offensively this season.
Statistics from Natural Stat Trick, Puck IQ, NHL and NHL EDGE.
