Morgan Rielly addresses the media after good friend John Tavares was stripped of Maple Leafs captaincy
This afternoon veteran Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly spoke about his team's switch of captain from John Tavares to Auston Matthews.
The Toronto Maple Leafs made the announcement this month that they were making a major change. New head coach Craig Berube decided to make Auston Matthews
the Captain stripping the responsibility from John Tavares.
Since the decision was made the world has not been able to hear from many of the players on the Maple Leafs besides Auston Matthews and John Tavares. That changed today when Morgan Rielly addressed the situation.
Morgan Rielly addresses his close friend John Tavares losing the captaincy
Morgan Rielly spoke with the media and was asked about the John Tavares situation. He gave a lot of credit to John Tavares for handling the situation with a lot of class.
He continues on and confirms what many people already know about John Tavares. When it comes to hockey and playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs all that truly matters is winning.
Despite not being the captain anymore John Tavares will still have plenty of opportunities to impact the Maple Leafs lineup. In every season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, John Tavares has eclipsed the 50-point mark. He will be just 2 seasons removed from his peak season where he had 80 points for the Maple Leafs in 2022-23.
Morgan Rielly's comments did not end with John Tavares he also had an opportunity to talk about the team's new captain Auston Matthews as well.
Morgan Rielly comments on Maple Leafs' new captain Auston Matthews
During this same interview Morgan Rielly was also asked about the new dynamic under Auston Matthews. Morgan Rielly confirmed this is something Auston Matthews had been working toward and preparing for since he got to Toronto as the top pick in the 2016 NHL Draft.
Auston Matthews since being drafted out of the Swiss League in 2016 has been the face of the Toronto Maple Leafs even before he became the captain. His iconic 4 goal debut for the Maple Leafs will go down in history as one of the best debuts of all time.
Now in his prime Auston Matthews has put up 100-point seasons in 2 of the last 3 years. He also was just shy of 70 goals finishing with 69 during his historic 2023-24 campaign. The Maple Leafs will now lean on him to be the driving force for success not only on the ice but in every aspect of the team going forward.
Source: Hockey Feed
Morgan Rielly shares true feelings over John Tavares losing captaincy
Source: HockeyDB
John Tavares Stats
Source: HockeyDB
Auston Matthews Stats
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| POLL | ||
AOÛT 18 | 296 ANSWERS Morgan Rielly addresses the media after good friend John Tavares was stripped of Maple Leafs captaincy Do you think Auston Matthews will be a better captain for the Toronto Maple Leafs than John Tavares was? | ||
| Yes | 109 | 36.8 % |
| No | 187 | 63.2 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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LIVE
APRIL 26, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Nathan MacKinnon | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Brandon Hagel | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Evan Bouchard | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Bowen Byram | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Josh Doan | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Guentzel | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Peyton Krebs | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Alex Tuch | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| John Carlson | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Nikita Kucherov | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Jackson Lacombe | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Gabriel Landeskog | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Connor McDavid | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Janis Jerome Moser | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Zach Benson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Zachary Bolduc | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cole Caufield | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Joel Edmundson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cutter Gauthier | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mikael Granlund | 1 | - | 1 | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||
| 2025-2026 NHL STANDINGS | ||||||
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Sabres | 82 | 50 | 23 | 9 | 109 | |
| Lightning | 82 | 50 | 26 | 6 | 106 | |
| Canadiens | 82 | 48 | 24 | 10 | 106 | |
| Bruins | 82 | 45 | 27 | 10 | 100 | |
| Senators | 82 | 44 | 27 | 11 | 99 | |
| Red Wings | 82 | 41 | 31 | 10 | 92 | |
| Panthers | 82 | 40 | 38 | 4 | 84 | |
| Maple Leafs | 82 | 32 | 36 | 14 | 78 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Hurricanes | 82 | 53 | 22 | 7 | 113 | |
| Penguins | 82 | 41 | 25 | 16 | 98 | |
| Flyers | 82 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 98 | |
| Capitals | 82 | 43 | 30 | 9 | 95 | |
| Blue Jackets | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 92 | |
| Islanders | 82 | 43 | 34 | 5 | 91 | |
| Devils | 82 | 42 | 37 | 3 | 87 | |
| Rangers | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Avalanche | 82 | 55 | 16 | 11 | 121 | |
| Stars | 82 | 50 | 20 | 12 | 112 | |
| Wild | 82 | 46 | 24 | 12 | 104 | |
| Mammoth | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Blues | 82 | 37 | 33 | 12 | 86 | |
| Predators | 82 | 38 | 34 | 10 | 86 | |
| Jets | 82 | 35 | 35 | 12 | 82 | |
| Blackhawks | 82 | 29 | 39 | 14 | 72 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Golden Knights | 82 | 39 | 26 | 17 | 95 | |
| Oilers | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 93 | |
| Ducks | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Kings | 82 | 35 | 27 | 20 | 90 | |
| Sharks | 82 | 39 | 35 | 8 | 86 | |
| Kraken | 82 | 34 | 37 | 11 | 79 | |
| Flames | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| Canucks | 82 | 25 | 49 | 8 | 58 | |
COMPLETE STANDINGS | ||||||