Leafs Defenseman Morgan Rielly Speaks Out on Recent Demotion
Morgan Rielly was recently demoted off of the first powerplay unit as Toronto continues to improve, and now he's mentioned his feelings on the whole situation.
It's safe to say that the 2024-25 season has not been the best for Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly.
He's had some of the worst defensive statistics of his career, he's less aggressive, and worst of all his offensive production has slipped dramatically; not great since he's depended on to lead not only the blueline's offense, but quarterback the power play.
But with his recent demotion, Toronto is experimenting with five forwards and trying to instill some life into their power play, and while it's not exactly what he envisioned, it's just how the cookie crumbles for Rielly at this point.
But he's keeping a level head even amidst his down season, and his main focus remains with helping the team win at any cost; even sacrificing his own spot to do it.
Craig Berube Confirms Morgan Rielly's Desire To Win
Ahead of Saturday's game against Montreal, Berube reiterated his decision to move Matthew Knies and Bobby McMann to the first PP unit, and that Rielly has no issues with the move:
It's great to see Rielly's desire to win although fans would like his production to reflect his comments.
This season, Rielly is on pace for 10 goals and 30 assists which wouldn't put him in his worst season, but the worst since 2020-21 and for someone who Toronto depends on heavily to drive the offense from the back; it's inexcusable.
He does have five goals and 15 assists this year but that includes a minus-16 rating, only 18 hits, and seven of his 20 points have been on the PP; a 35% clip that while is bad, is evident that Toronto's new defense lacks true offense.
There's also Rielly's $7.5M cap hit with that lowered production that makes it harder and harder to justify. If he was hitting 50-60 points consistently and offering serviceable defense then perhaps, but the way things have been the deal looks worse and worse.
He's not the sole person to blame for Toronto's inconsistencies this season, and while the team has done well enough to keep atop the Atlantic, they are a wild card on any given night.
Morgan Rielly has a desire to win, as should every player on the team. But he needs to pick his game up in order to back his words up and prove to fans he wants to win.
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