Blade of Steel has no direct affiliation to the NHL or NHLPA

Toronto Maple Leafs hit with harsh reality involving Morgan Rielly


PUBLICATION
Alexander Cole
February 4, 2026  (12:00)
SHARE THIS STORY

Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly (44) controls the puck against the Philadelphia Flyers during the first period at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Photo credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly has had his fair share of struggles over the past few years, but now, the Leafs are learning the full extent.

Morgan Rielly is currently injured, and has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury that should be healed by the end of the Winter Olympics.
For the Leafs, the Olympic break starts today. Guys like Rielly and Knies will now be able to heal from their nagging ailments.
Having said that, the NHL trade deadline will soon follow the Olympic break, and there has been some discourse concerning Rielly.
At the end of the day, Rielly is a player who the Leafs have considered trading, and now, it feels like a trade might be the right move.

Morgan Rielly is getting in the way of a Maple Leafs run

After back-to-back wins over the past couple of days, it has been revealed that over the past four seasons, the Maple Leafs are 24-5-1 when Rielly is not in the lineup.
30 games is a large sample size, and an 80 percent win rate is no joke. Clearly, Rielly is not having the intended effect on the roster.
It should also be noted that defenseman Brandon Carlo has been playing his best hockey while next to defenseman Jake McCabe.
It is further proof that Rielly just isn't the player that fans have been hoping for him to be. Ultimately, there is a lot that the Leafs need to fix right now.
Whether or not Rielly actually goes is something that very much remains to be seen, and we have no idea if the Leafs would be bold enough to make that change.
For now, however, it remains something that general manager Brad Treliving is going to have to think about.
POLL
FEVRIER 4|388 ANSWERS
Toronto Maple Leafs hit with harsh reality involving Morgan Rielly

Are the Toronto Maple Leafs better without Morgan Rielly?

YES31380.7 %
NO7519.3 %
List of polls

BLADE OF STEEL
COPYRIGHT @2026 - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
TERMS OF SERVICE - PRIVACY POLICY - COOKIE POLICY
RSS FEED - SITEMAP - ROBOTS.TXT