Morgan Rielly embraces new role as Maple Leafs seek blue-line reset

Morgan Rielly is back with the Toronto Maple Leafs after an off-season in which a trade felt almost inevitable. Years of speculation about his future followed a steep dip in his results at both ends of the ice, but instead of a fresh start elsewhere he enters a season where his environment and responsibilities have changed significantly.

Rielly’s usage reshaped as Raddysh takes over the power play

Toronto’s blue line has been restructured with Darren Raddysh arriving on a rich contract and taking over as the primary power-play quarterback. That move removes a major source of pressure from Rielly, whose cap hit of $7.5 million now looks less burdensome in a rapidly rising salary-cap world. The hope is that with a lighter load, he can focus more on driving play at five-on-five.

Under Craig Berube, the Maple Leafs relied much more on dumping the puck in, a style that limited Rielly’s ability to carry it through the neutral zone and attack off the rush. His shot totals dipped to 141 and 126 in the past two full seasons, his lowest in any 82-game year since his rookie campaign. With general manager John Chayka and head coach Jim Hiller prioritizing schemes that lean into their players’ skill sets, Rielly is expected to be deployed aggressively in offensive situations.

Hiller has opened by pairing Rielly with Raddysh, a duo slated for heavy offensive-zone usage alongside one of Toronto’s top forward lines. In the final pre-season game against the Ottawa Senators, that partnership spent extended stretches in the offensive zone and Rielly scored after a long cycle shift. At the same time, tracking data shows he reaches peak skating speeds less often than he did in 2021–22, underscoring the need for him to manage risk and adjust his decision-making as he ages.

Toronto still needs offence from the back end. Beyond Raddysh, the likes of Chris Tanev and Jake McCabe are known more for defending, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson is 35. If Rielly can find a balance between his instincts and his current physical tools, he becomes the most likely source of secondary blue-line scoring.

Hellebuyck’s camp holdout raises performance and trade questions

In Winnipeg, Connor Hellebuyck remains away from Jets camp while he waits for a trade request to be resolved. The situation is delicate in the dressing room, but it also poses a practical issue for a goaltender who needs game reps to sharpen up before the regular season. Jeremy Swayman’s experience two years ago, when he missed camp over a contract dispute and finished with a .892 save percentage and a goals-against average above three, shows how hard it can be to play catch-up.

Hellebuyck is 33, has carried a heavy workload over the past five seasons and is coming off a down year that included knee surgery in November. Staying away from camp not only risks a slow start if he joins a team late, it also does little to boost his trade value at a time when interested clubs would prefer to see him performing well in the crease.

Stenberg’s hot start versus McKenna’s long-term upside

The pre-season has also fueled early comparisons between top picks Ivar Stenberg and Gavin McKenna. Stenberg made an emphatic statement for the San Jose Sharks with a hat trick and an assist in a 10–0 win over the Anaheim Ducks, a game in which Anaheim dressed only a handful of players who are likely to see NHL action. McKenna has produced plenty of highlight-reel moments but has not piled up points at the same rate yet.

Some evaluators believed before the draft that Stenberg was more NHL-ready, while McKenna had the higher offensive ceiling. Over a full 84-game schedule, McKenna’s high-end skill is expected to translate into more production, especially with his chances of spending the season in the top six alongside elite forwards like William Nylander, John Tavares or Auston Matthews. Stenberg, by contrast, may not be stapled to Macklin Celebrini as the Sharks look to spread out their attack. Early pre-season fireworks aside, McKenna still profiles as the safer bet to finish their rookie years with the edge in points.