On Tuesday afternoon, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced that they have placed defenceman Morgan Rielly on the injured reserve with an upper-body injury.
Rielly sustained the injury during Thursday’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Rielly missed one game after getting hurt in Thursday’s overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. The 23-year-old fell in the second period and saw limited action in the third.
Toronto Maple Leafs’ Morgan Rielly Placed On IR
The Leafs top-pairing, left-handed defenceman is having a great season. Rielly has tallied five goals and 26 assists in 47 games played. Rielly’s Corsi For percentage is a modest 52.5. He leads the Leafs defencemen in ice-time. Not to mention, he is the Leafs best offensive defenceman; he leads defencemen in goals and assists.
A Big Loss
Morgan Rielly was the Toronto Maple Leafs best defenceman without a doubt. The Leafs will miss him on their top pairing with Ron Hainsey. He was their go-to defenceman, racking up a lot of the minutes throughout the game, playing in many of the most important situations.
The Leafs are already without Nikita Zaitsev who is dealing with a lower-body injury that he sustained against the Detriot Red Wings back in Dec. 2017. Zaitsev, along with Rielly, is one of the best defencemen Toronto has to offer. He is speedy and can chip in offensively on the power play. Not to mention, Zaitsev could rack up minutes on the penalty kill.
The Leafs are now forced to play a defence that is lacking in mobility, agility, and speed. Roman Polak has seen his better days on the blue line. Travis Dermott is playing well throughout his first few games, but he still has a lot to learn before he can help contribute to the Maple Leafs in a bigger role.
Looking Ahead
The Leafs will be in for a tough spit without Rielly. They will have to play back-to-back games against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday and the Dallas Stars on Thursday. After they already lost to the Colorado Avalanche tonight 4-2 at the ACC.
In lieu of Rielly’s absence, the Leafs called up Rinat Valiev from the AHL Toronto Marlies. Valiev, 22, had one goal and seven assists in 29 games for the AHL Marlies. He played in 10 games for Toronto during the 2015-16 NHL season.
Main Photo:
