Morgan Rielly Appreciation Thread.

[zeke]

hey babs give him more ice time.

 

[Superstar]

What a gem.

So much emotion in his dad's face...from relief to euphoria...like he dreamt about it since the day Rielly was born - to be a Maple Leaf one day...he really, really loves the Toronto Maple Leafs.

 

[A1LeafNation]

 

[Gabriel426]

It was weird defending him in his down year in 2016-17 but glad to see he's showing his full potential.

Oh those were the days when trolls come here and said they are Leafs fans but Reilly is just not a #1....

 

[TMLeafs17]

So much emotion in his dad's face...from relief to euphoria...like he dreamt about it since the day Rielly was born - to be a Maple Leaf one day...he really, really loves the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Imagine the reaction if the Leafs passed on Mo... kind of curious now hahaha!

But seriously, it’s exactly like you said it, 6600 days leading up

 

[Man Bear Pig]

Looks a lot like prime Keith to me, which is who he was always compared to early on. Keith was/is more physical but also very dirty and undisciplined at times. It's mind blowing that the Toronto media doesn't talk about him more as being a #1. The concern is always who his partner will be.

 

[CaymanIslands]

Morgan Rielly has to be in the top 3 Norris consideration now if not # 1

 

[613Leafer]

I do think he's just as good an option for captain as the two centres. He's been here longer than both, has handled the media well since day 1, is our best defenceman, is signed longterm to a good deal, seems well liked in the room, has a really good work ethic, etc

If he did become captain I think the media would act like it was a crazy surprise, but I really don't think it would be.

 

[meefer]

hey babs give him more ice time.

It's coming. The only thing holding him back is his partner, when someone is capable of playing the minutes Rielly can, we'll see the growth in minutes.

 

[Gallagbi]

It's coming. The only thing holding him back is his partner, when someone is capable of playing the minutes Rielly can, we'll see the growth in minutes.

It's nice to see Rielly and Gardiner spotting in to the 3rd pair for a few extra minutes.

 

[zeke]

It's coming. The only thing holding him back is his partner, when someone is capable of playing the minutes Rielly can, we'll see the growth in minutes.

yep. bit by bit.

24:16 over his last 7gms.

 

[saltming]

Oh those were the days when trolls come here and said they are Leafs fans but Reilly is just not a #1....

Heck there is a certain supposed leafs fan that has "proprietor" stats that prove Mo is a #5 defenseman at best

 

[diceman934]

Heck there is a certain supposed leafs fan that has "proprietor" stats that prove Mo is a #5 defenseman at best

Yes he looks more foolish all the time.

 

[saltming]

Yes he looks more foolish all the time.

With is very difficult to do because even then it was the most absurd thing I've heard said.

 

[hockeywiz542]

Furthermore, he’s probably just entering his prime years.

And yet, Rielly, who debuted at 19, only turned 24 in March. Despite his success so far, Rielly is still figuring out the league — especially when it comes to playing defence.

“A big part of being good defensively is just learning more and more about the position,” he said before a recent game.

Rielly seems to be absorbing lessons all the time, talking a lot about patience these days and how when he was younger and booming with the frenetic energy of a teenager, he would bounce around the ice like a pinball and chase the puck. Now, he’s learned that less, is often more. That holding your ground can be a more effective way to get the puck back.

Take, for example, a 2-on-1 breaking out of the corner.

“Your brain is going a million miles an hour. Your feet want to move — you want to go chase the puck,” Rielly said. “But when you’re a little bit more experienced, you’re a bit calmer and you can just hold the middle of the ice a bit better. I find that was a big area of improvement for me. Just holding we call it, as opposed to running around the defensive zone. You don’t have to do that as much.”

Rielly has taken the lesson of efficiency from his defence partner Ron Hainsey — a man on the precipice of 1,000 NHL games — how he will stick himself in the middle of the ice and won’t leave unless he absolutely has to, almost like a security guard protecting a precious piece of art. It’s a subtle detail in defending, the kind you maybe only learn from playing games and getting burned.

 

[Once]

I would have no problem with him wearing the C. Captain Morgan every Saturday for the next decade or so.

 

[34]

Rielly is a top 5 D man in the NHL.

 

[Apotheosis]

Reminds me so much of Prime Duncan Keith. Slightly better at offence and a tick worse defensively (but so massively improved that it's amazing to watch him separate guys from the puck and display good gap control), but we seriously need to get him a good partner. He's been carrying the corpse of Hainsey this season so far. Get him his Seabrook.

 

[Ziggdiezan]

Reminds me so much of Prime Duncan Keith. Slightly better at offence and a tick worse defensively (but so massively improved that it's amazing to watch him separate guys from the puck and display good gap control), but we seriously need to get him a good partner. He's been carrying the corpse of Hainsey this season so far. Get him his Seabrook.

Both Rielly and Gardiner have never really had a partner that suits them. Hainsey is the most suitable to date arguably but he is obviously an old dog at this point.

 

[Apotheosis]

Both Rielly and Gardiner have never really had a partner that suits them. Hainsey is the most suitable to date arguably but he is obviously an old dog at this point.

Gardiner is too hot and cold for my liking. I like him, but I think we are better suited letting him walk and letting Dermott take his place. Get Rielly a stable partner and find someone who has chemistry with Dermott and we are good to go. If the Swedes hit their ceilings, something like;

Rielly - Sandin -> Sandin is stable and moves the puck well. Lets Rielly do his own thing and they both cover gaps well.

Dermott - Liljegren -> Dermott is stable, moves the puck well and lets Liljegren explode offensively.

 

[Ziggdiezan]

Gardiner is too hot and cold for my liking. I like him, but I think we are better suited letting him walk and letting Dermott take his place. Get Rielly a stable partner and find someone who has chemistry with Dermott and we are good to go. If the Swedes hit their ceilings, something like;

Rielly - Sandin -> Sandin is stable and moves the puck well. Lets Rielly do his own thing and they both cover gaps well.

Dermott - Liljegren -> Dermott is stable, moves the puck well and lets Liljegren explode offensively.

I worry that dermott wont be able to step into Gardiner'a role seamlessly right away. Gardiner plays a ton of ES ice time. It is a very tricky situation for Dubas certainly (to sign Gardiner or not)

Isnt Sandin a left shot though? I really like your 2nd pairing to be honest but I could honestly see Dermott playing with Rielly at some point. Has the hockey IQ to be a strong defensive player.

Maybe even:

Rielly-Dermott
Sandin-Lily (should have chemistry from the marlies)

 

[meefer]

I worry that dermott wont be able to step into Gardiner'a role seamlessly right away. Gardiner plays a ton of ES ice time. It is a very tricky situation for Dubas certainly (to sign Gardiner or not)

Isnt Sandin a left shot though? I really like your 2nd pairing to be honest but I could honestly see Dermott playing with Rielly at some point. Has the hockey IQ to be a strong defensive player.

Maybe even:

Rielly-Dermott
Sandin-Lily (should have chemistry from the marlies)

Yes, Sandin is a lefty.
I've been advocating a Dermott/Rielly pairing for awhile. I'd have liked to see what might have occurred during the preseason, but with Mo playing the right side as he's got the best skating ability on the D and to my eyes, the best backhand pass - imo, an important part of playing your off side. Dermott looks to be capable of putting up the minutes, but as essentially a rookie, his experience may be lacking and thus the refusal of Babs to move him up in the line up. It's also a reason why I'd pair them with Dermott on the left side. Making the transition to RD, at this point in his development, while moving him to first pair would be a massive shift in responsibility and would be asking for too much of a young D.
Sandin and Lily could look very nice, but I think your 2 years away from having both on the Leafs. They are young.

 

[saltming]

I worry that dermott wont be able to step into Gardiner'a role seamlessly right away. Gardiner plays a ton of ES ice time. It is a very tricky situation for Dubas certainly (to sign Gardiner or not)

Isnt Sandin a left shot though? I really like your 2nd pairing to be honest but I could honestly see Dermott playing with Rielly at some point. Has the hockey IQ to be a strong defensive player.

Maybe even:

Rielly-Dermott
Sandin-Lily (should have chemistry from the marlies)

Hes still sheltered but this bodies well

 

[diceman934]

So much emotion in his dad's face...from relief to euphoria...like he dreamt about it since the day Rielly was born - to be a Maple Leaf one day...he really, really loves the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The kid sitting behind him was his team mate at Notre Dame Midget Telus cup Champion team Stefan Matteau has a huge smile on his face.

 

[Peiskos]