Morgan Rielly: Part II

[cup67]

[/NHL]

I made the comparison last year I'll make it again this year. He's going to be exactly like Yandle. They both love to just rush the puck. They can both move it with good vision and passes, but more often than not they use their great speed to get into odd man rushes. I don't really like the comparison to Karlsson or Keith. And Letang is much more of a "wild card". His game is virtually identical to Yandles in my mind.

brian leetch

 

[The Beyonder]

I made the comparison last year I'll make it again this year. He's going to be exactly like Yandle. They both love to just rush the puck. They can both move it with good vision and passes, but more often than not they use their great speed to get into odd man rushes. I don't really like the comparison to Karlsson or Keith. And Letang is much more of a "wild card". His game is virtually identical to Yandles in my mind.

Yandle is a very good comparison actually. I think Keith is also a good comparison, but Karlsson is pretty different imo. If Rielly turned into our Yandle, it'll be a great pick for the leafs. So far he looks he has that potential.

 

[The Beyonder]

[/NHL]

brian leetch

Lets not compare him to a HOF. He plays similar to Yandle as well. Rielly skates a bit smoother, but both him and Yandle are explosive and fast. Yandle likes to join the rush much like Rielly does. Yandle and Rielly are both poised and great passers. They're very similar. Leaf fans should be ecstatic if Rielly ever turned into a Yandle type d-man. Yandle should have been a top 5-10 pick in his draft.

 

[Bluejaysfan*]

Why are people that big of a fan of Yandle? He is a pmd that is sheltered behind the Coyotes system and is terrible defensively. All one needs to do is watch Karlsson or even a guy like Doughty and the similarities between them and Rielly are clearly visible.

 

[The Beyonder]

Why are people that big of a fan of Yandle? He is a pmd that is sheltered behind the Coyotes system and is terrible defensively. All one needs to do is watch Karlsson or even a guy like Doughty and the similarities between them and Rielly are clearly visible.

Sorry, but style wise, I see more comparison to a guy like Yandle or Keith than Karlsson and Doughty. The problem is that people get too high of an expectation with such comparisons to Keith, Karlsson, Doughty, and even Leetch FFS. Can Rielly become a #1 elite defensemen? Sure, but fans should happy as well if he turns into a guy like Yandle that can QB the powerplay and play lots of ES and PP minutes. Even d-man like Yandle don't grow on trees, he'd be huge for the leafs if we got him.

 

[ConnorTO]

Cracks me up whenever I see some other team's fan call him "undersized" when he's 6'1 205 at 19

no he's average

i mean Kadri is pretty skinny

 

[Bluejaysfan*]

Sorry, but style wise, I see more comparison to a guy like Yandle or Keith than Karlsson and Doughty. The problem is that people get too high of an expectation with such comparisons to Keith, Karlsson, Doughty, and even Leetch FFS. Can Rielly become a #1 elite defensemen? Sure, but fans should happy as well if he turns into a guy like Yandle that can QB the powerplay and play lots of ES and PP minutes. Even d-man like Yandle don't grow on trees, he'd be huge for the leafs if we got him.

No dont get me wrong, Yandle is a good defensemen but I think Gardiner is more similar to him. I watch Yandle play a lot and there are things that Rielly do that I have never seen Yandle done in his career. IMO when I see Rielly play, he reminds me most of Karlsson and Keith.

 

[Purity*]

Cracks me up whenever I see some other team's fan call him "undersized" when he's 6'1 205 at 19

There are some ridiculous things floating around about Rielly. Nobody thinks he will be good defensively eh? I can name you 100 defensemen who were 19 years old who also "didn't look good defensively" and turned out to be just fine defensively. I don't see a yandle-type d-man at all, he's definitely doughty/keith potential, overly-optimistic or not. And contrary to a lot of popular belief, you don't need to be 6'4" 220 pounds to be a dominant defensemen.

 

[Trainspotter]

There are some ridiculous things floating around about Rielly. Nobody thinks he will be good defensively eh? I can name you 100 defensemen who were 19 years old who also "didn't look good defensively" and turned out to be just fine defensively.

Very, very few offensively minded defencemen come into the league as great defenders. There's just no pressure on them to learn that stuff in junior. Points get you drafted in the upper reaches of the 1st round. Scott Neidermeyer is a good example. He became a great defender as he matured, but Lemaire and he had plenty of battles over his lack of attention to defense in his early years in New Jersey. What's nice to see about Rielly is that he's clearly making a conscientious effort to improve his defending. He doesn't get beat to the outside any longer and he's learned to use his low center to get under his checks when he's sealing them off on the wall.

With his speed and mobility, the key for him is going to be learning how to separate the puck from the puck carrier without getting himself tied up so he can pounce on the loose puck and get it moving up ice. He's already learning to do this with some regularity. He can leave the heavy lifting and intimidation to Gleason.

 

[hullsy47]

There are some ridiculous things floating around about Rielly. Nobody thinks he will be good defensively eh? I can name you 100 defensemen who were 19 years old who also "didn't look good defensively" and turned out to be just fine defensively. I don't see a yandle-type d-man at all, he's definitely doughty/keith potential, overly-optimistic or not. And contrary to a lot of popular belief, you don't need to be 6'4" 220 pounds to be a dominant defensemen.

the best thing to happen to the leafs in years ....reilly is already better than gardiner ...his oneral play the past 30 games has been solid ,can u imagine people wanting him to to play in the WJC or MOOSEJAW ...there are just not enuff good players for elite players to develop with
hed have to play 40 minutes a nite in junior to compare to his NHL time
one thing about carlyle ......he knows a good defenseman when he see one .....i truly think he likes reilly

 

[gabeliscious]

the best thing to happen to the leafs in years ....reilly is already better than gardiner ...his oneral play the past 30 games has been solid ,can u imagine people wanting him to to play in the WJC or MOOSEJAW ...there are just not enuff good players for elite players to develop with
hed have to play 40 minutes a nite in junior to compare to his NHL time
one thing about carlyle ......he knows a good defenseman when he see one .....i truly think he likes reilly

rielly is a much smarter player the gardiner which is why he is better. im not sure the skills of the two is as far apart as people think. the problem with gardiner is you cant teach hockey sense so we are forced to just wait and hope he puts it together. with respect to rielly, he already seems to understand the nhl game, its about him getting use to the speed and gaining experience. i think he wasnt given any favours by playing with below average defenseman like ranger and fraser and even franson in his first few games.

if we could have played rielly with gleason from game 1 i think the kid would have been even further ahead today.

one thing is for sure....it is an absolute treat to see riellys eyes light up when he gets the puck and starts skating through the neutral zone. such an amazing skater, still handler, hockey iq. kid is going to be top pairing imo one day

 

[FreeBird]

There are some ridiculous things floating around about Rielly. Nobody thinks he will be good defensively eh? I can name you 100 defensemen who were 19 years old who also "didn't look good defensively" and turned out to be just fine defensively. I don't see a yandle-type d-man at all, he's definitely doughty/keith potential, overly-optimistic or not. And contrary to a lot of popular belief, you don't need to be 6'4" 220 pounds to be a dominant defensemen.

5'11" at most, and he's turning into a turn over machine.

 

[Fogelhund]

5'11" at most, and he's turning into a turn over machine.

Rookie season, kid... Defence. No patience.

It is going to take him another two to three years to even scratch what he can be defensively.

 

[mikebel111*]

Rookie season, kid... Defence. No patience.

It is going to take him another two to three years to even scratch what he can be defensively.

He is just upset that a leaf prospect will be a star

 

[Michael Gary Scott]

Cracks me up whenever I see some other team's fan call him "undersized" when he's 6'1 205 at 19

And its not like he's a flabby 205 either. Built as ****

 

[BIitz]

Why are people that big of a fan of Yandle? He is a pmd that is sheltered behind the Coyotes system and is terrible defensively. All one needs to do is watch Karlsson or even a guy like Doughty and the similarities between them and Rielly are clearly visible.

Yandle is a very good offensive D. And we're comparing style. You do realize Doughty is extremely physical and has a solid one timer? Rielly does none of these things.

If you watch Karlsson regularly you'd see they're very far apart. Karlsson relies on his passing more than the two, he's very cerebral, and he generates most of his offense with the puck on his stick. He's relied as the one man breakout for Ottawa. Rielly and Yandle generate offense by using their speed to join in on the rushes without the puck. Neither of them can slow the game like Karlsson can either.

No dont get me wrong, Yandle is a good defensemen but I think Gardiner is more similar to him. I watch Yandle play a lot and there are things that Rielly do that I have never seen Yandle done in his career. IMO when I see Rielly play, he reminds me most of Karlsson and Keith.

Gardiner isn't like Yandle. Yandle doesn't do 3 laps around the net with the puck. Both Yandle and Rielly move the puck off their stick relatively quick because they love to pinch off the line and get into an opportunity to score. They're your "traditional" offensive defensivemen.

 

[Durrr]

5'11" at most, and he's turning into a turn over machine.

You lost me when you lowered his height to try and give him a negative description. 6 '1, 205 is not even close to small.

 

[Bluejaysfan*]

Yandle is a very good offensive D. And we're comparing style. You do realize Doughty is extremely physical and has a solid one timer? Rielly does none of these things.

If you watch Karlsson regularly you'd see they're very far apart. Karlsson relies on his passing more than the two, he's very cerebral, and he generates most of his offense with the puck on his stick. He's relied as the one man breakout for Ottawa. Rielly and Yandle generate offense by using their speed to join in on the rushes without the puck. Neither of them can slow the game like Karlsson can either.



Gardiner isn't like Yandle. Yandle doesn't do 3 laps around the net with the puck. Both Yandle and Rielly move the puck off their stick relatively quick because they love to pinch off the line and get into an opportunity to score. They're your "traditional" offensive defensivemen.

To be fair, we havent really seen much of Riellys one timer. And there is no saying he could not develop one to be as strong as Doughty. Rielly has been physical at times, but I understand he is not as physical as Doughty, hence why I said he is a mix or Doughty and Keith but more similar to Keith.

Also, next time you watch Rielly, see the way he carries the puck up the ice with a full head of steam, it is very similar to Karlsson. All one needs to do is watch the last Sens vs Leafs game and they played very similar to one another. Karlsson is relied on more because he is more proven, I can bet you that in his rookie season, Karlsson had a similar role to Rielly in where he has the was kept on a bit of a leash and was not allowed to use all of his skating ability.

 

[Bluejaysfan*]

rielly is a much smarter player the gardiner which is why he is better. im not sure the skills of the two is as far apart as people think. the problem with gardiner is you cant teach hockey sense so we are forced to just wait and hope he puts it together. with respect to rielly, he already seems to understand the nhl game, its about him getting use to the speed and gaining experience. i think he wasnt given any favours by playing with below average defenseman like ranger and fraser and even franson in his first few games.

if we could have played rielly with gleason from game 1 i think the kid would have been even further ahead today.

one thing is for sure....it is an absolute treat to see riellys eyes light up when he gets the puck and starts skating through the neutral zone. such an amazing skater, still handler, hockey iq. kid is going to be top pairing imo one day

It is not like Gardiner does not have the hockey sense either though. He just is very inconsistent with regard to when he uses it. He showed his elite hockey sense for the entire playoffs and almost every time we play Boston. If he played every game like how he plays the Bruins, he would be a #1 defensemen. I mean...the kid literally becomes a completely different player when he plays them.

 

[rdawg1234]

you guys are making predictions about a 1st year 19 year old defender.

He's 100% going to get much better, which makes it annoying when i hear people claiming certain aspects of his game are bad. Of course they are, he's a rookie.

 

[gabeliscious]

It is not like Gardiner does not have the hockey sense either though. He just is very inconsistent with regard to when he uses it. He showed his elite hockey sense for the entire playoffs and almost every time we play Boston. If he played every game like how he plays the Bruins, he would be a #1 defensemen. I mean...the kid literally becomes a completely different player when he plays them.

very inconsistent is putting it nicely. i think gardiner is an unbelievable player. i just think he gambles too much which ultimately leads to looking poor defensively. if he can learn to choose when to rush and when to stay back he will be gold. in contrast it looks like rielly processes this concept much faster and at an earlier age. im not saying gardiner has zero hockey sense, i just see it as being more obvious with rielly. everyone matures at different times and gardiner is very young still so its not like he is in trouble of being a bust or anything.

 

[TheLeastOfTheBunch]

First 25 games of the season:
0 goals, 9 points, -11

Next 26 games:
2 goals, 10 points +/- 0.

 

[BIitz]

To be fair, we havent really seen much of Riellys one timer. And there is no saying he could not develop one to be as strong as Doughty. Rielly has been physical at times, but I understand he is not as physical as Doughty, hence why I said he is a mix or Doughty and Keith but more similar to Keith.

Also, next time you watch Rielly, see the way he carries the puck up the ice with a full head of steam, it is very similar to Karlsson. All one needs to do is watch the last Sens vs Leafs game and they played very similar to one another. Karlsson is relied on more because he is more proven, I can bet you that in his rookie season, Karlsson had a similar role to Rielly in where he has the was kept on a bit of a leash and was not allowed to use all of his skating ability.

I've seen more than enough of Rielly in the WHL, AHL and NHL to know he's nothing like Doughty. I don't watch enough of the Blackhawks to see a comparison to Keith, but I know Keith is a much better defender than Rielly will be.

A lot of defenders carry the puck with a full head of steam, not just Karlsson. Karlsson is great because he can carry the puck without a full head of steam, he slows the game down like no other defender can. He controls the pace of the attack wonderfully. I'm sorry I just don't think any comparison to Karlsson is fair, even stylistically. Karlsson plays the game offensively like no one else, he's a generational talent. His puck support is top notch, his skating is great, his IQ is amazing, his passing is beautiful. Rielly just don't see the game the same way, which isn't a knock on Rielly at all. He just plays the game like Yandle exactly, and I've been making the comparison since Rielly was in the WHL. Even against weaker competition like the WHL Rielly didn't play the same style as Karlsson does.

 

[Pi]

I've seen more than enough of Rielly in the WHL, AHL and NHL to know he's nothing like Doughty. I don't watch enough of the Blackhawks to see a comparison to Keith, but I know Keith is a much better defender than Rielly will be.

A lot of defenders carry the puck with a full head of steam, not just Karlsson. Karlsson is great because he can carry the puck without a full head of steam, he slows the game down like no other defender can. He controls the pace of the attack wonderfully. I'm sorry I just don't think any comparison to Karlsson is fair, even stylistically. Karlsson plays the game offensively like no one else, he's a generational talent. His puck support is top notch, his skating is great, his IQ is amazing, his passing is beautiful. Rielly just don't see the game the same way, which isn't a knock on Rielly at all. He just plays the game like Yandle exactly, and I've been making the comparison since Rielly was in the WHL. Even against weaker competition like the WHL Rielly didn't play the same style as Karlsson does.

Give me your magic 8 ball when you are done with it. People have their opinions, you have yours, others have their own. No need to force it on others.

---

Rielly has looked great when he's not playing with Franson and I think we will see an even better Rielly coming after the break. He's gaining confidence every game he plays and this break is probably a negative for the Leafs as a whole but it will be very beneficial to Rielly.

 

[BIitz]

Give me your magic 8 ball when you are done with it. People have their opinions, you have yours, others have their own. No need to force it on others.

---

Rielly has looked great when he's not playing with Franson and I think we will see an even better Rielly coming after the break. He's gaining confidence every game he plays and this break is probably a negative for the Leafs as a whole but it will be very beneficial to Rielly.

Sure, here you go.