It’s time for some NHL Rumours. The Toronto Maple Leafs are heading into one of their most significant offseasons in franchise history. A new general manager in John Chayka, a coaching search underway, and a roster that missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs entirely in 2025-26. Changes are coming, and the biggest name attached to those changes is a player who has spent his entire career in Toronto.
This edition of NHL Rumours looks at what Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff is reporting on Morgan Rielly and the Maple Leafs’ offseason trade board.
All NHL rumours come from the original source and are subject to change.
NHL Rumours Latest on Morgan Rielly Trade and the Toronto Maple Leafs
Rumour: Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff released his first trade target board of the 2026 offseason and placed Morgan Rielly at the top of it. Seravalli’s board also includes six goaltenders, a pair of young forwards, and impact defencemen across the league. On Rielly specifically, Seravalli wrote, “The Leafs need a puck-moving defenceman, someone who can help get them out of trouble efficiently and exit the zone with more ease. Rielly isn’t that anymore. He’s been a fine playoff contributor, surprisingly enough, but he isn’t an effective quarterback on the first power play unit, and his game showed significant signs of slowing down this season.”
Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Apr 10, 2025. Close-up of a Toronto Maple Leafs logo, a blue maple leaf with TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS embroidered in white
Analysis: Seravalli putting Rielly at the top of his board is not a coincidence. It reflects a broader reality that has been building in Toronto for two seasons. The 32-year-old is signed through 2030 at a $7.5 million average annual value and carries a full no-movement clause, meaning he cannot be moved without his consent. That last detail is the most important one.
#Leafs Morgan Rielly leads our first Trade Targets 🎯 board of the offseason.
Six goalies on the board, including #LGRW Sebastian Cossa. Pair of young forwards. Impact defensemen.
Buckle up. A most interesting offseason beckons:https://t.co/jSq7fvk3kL
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) May 21, 2026
Rielly has deep personal and professional roots in Toronto. Getting him to waive that clause is the first obstacle Chayka faces before any trade conversation becomes real. That said, Chris Johnston reported that the message coming out of Toronto’s new front office is that every player on the roster is available for discussion except Auston Matthews. That is a significant signal.
“The message that’s come out of their front office is they’re willing to discuss any players on their roster except Auston Matthews,” he reported. Johnston further continued, “They’re open to at least hearing what you have to say on any player, but Matthews.”
If Chayka is willing to listen to anyone, Rielly’s $7.5 million cap hit becomes one of the first calls he takes. There is at least one specific proposal already circulating. Veteran NHL writer Jim Matheson floated a straight swap between Toronto and Edmonton involving Rielly and Darnell Nurse, with the Oilers receiving Rielly’s $7.5 million cap hit and Toronto absorbing Nurse’s $9.25 million contract.
Both players have no-movement clauses. Both would have to agree. And for Edmonton, the appeal is clear: Rielly’s skating and puck movement would be a natural fit alongside McDavid and Draisaitl in a transition-heavy system. With Kris Knoblauch now out of Edmonton, the Oilers would want to rebuild on their weak points, and the blueline has been one of their biggest kryptonites.
Nurse’s performance throughout the season has been above average at best and underwhelming at worst. This has caused the Oilers to repeatedly lose their early leads both through the regular season and playoffs. If Bowman wants to give the Oilers and his star players any realistic chance at getting to the Stanley Cup once again, placing Rielly on his back line proves crucial.
What It Means for Morgan Rielly and The Maple Leafs
Seravalli, leading his trade board with Rielly, tells you where the conversation is starting this offseason. Toronto needs to get faster, younger, and cheaper on the back end. Rielly is none of those things right now.
Whether Chayka can convince him to move is the defining question. If Rielly is open to a change of scenery, particularly toward western Canada closer to his Vancouver roots, the market for a defenceman of his pedigree will not be short on suitors. Buckle up. A most interesting offseason beckons.
Main Photo Credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images
