Morgan Rielly's trade rumors just picked up steam, and the Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman has a new suitor: Anaheim.
Insider Chris Johnston raised the idea Thursday night on his own show, saying Anaheim simply does not have enough NHL defense to move forward.
"Maybe there's a fit there," Johnston said, pointing directly at Rielly as a name worth watching.
Rielly is no throwaway piece. He put up 36 points in 78 games this season, with 11 goals and 25 assists.
But the underlying numbers tell a rougher story. He finished at a -18 rating, and Toronto closed the year on a seven-game losing streak.
The Maple Leafs wrapped up 32-36-14, good for 78 points and a 28th overall ranking in the league.
Rielly still carries a $7,500,000 cap hit, a number that would force Anaheim to get creative before any trade gets built.
Anaheim's playoff exit exposed a real problem on defense
The Ducks finished 43-33-6 this season, good enough for 17th overall, and made a real push in the postseason.
Anaheim knocked off Edmonton in the first round, then ran into Vegas and lost that series.
That kind of playoff exit is exactly what sends a GM digging through his own blue line. Pat Verbeek runs the front office, and Joel Quenneville is behind the bench.
Ironically, Toronto already has Anaheim's number this season. The Maple Leafs beat the Ducks twice, 6-4 in March and 5-4 in overtime weeks later.
Would Verbeek actually commit $7,500,000 in cap space after one rough playoff round? Doing it off a single bad series would be like repainting a house because one wall looks off.
Rielly cooled down over his last ten games too, managing just three points on two goals and an assist. Not exactly a strong closing argument.
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For now this stays speculation, not a done deal. But when a name like Johnston starts connecting a player to a specific team, calls are usually already happening.
Should the Ducks actually give up assets for Morgan Rielly this summer?
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