Toronto Maple Leafs All-Time Best Draft Picks #6
By James Tanner
The Top Ten Post-Expansion Toronto Maple Leafs All-Time greatest draft picks continues today with #6.
The Toronto Maple Leafs may not have the best draft record in the NHL, but after doing a four part series on their first-round picks, this has been uplifting in comparison.
The countdown so far has been as follows:
It continues today with another defenseman, one who is currently active and on the team, none other than #44 ….
Morgan Rielly
Morgan Rielly was drafted 5th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. A defenseman from British Columbia, Rielly is a beautiful skater and was (at the time) the most exciting pick the Leafs had made in years.
Hyberbolic showman, and unpopular ex-general manager, Brian Burke selected Rielly and said he’d have picked him with the top-pick. Now, as ridiculous as that was at the time, Rielly has emerged as one of the better players of his draft year. None of the players picked ahead of Rielly are currently better or more successful. You could make a good case that he’s the third best player in his draft year, after Filip Forsberg and Hampus Lindholm.
Rielly on the Maple Leafs
Rielly played one final year of junior and 14 AHL games before making the Leafs as a 19 year old in 2013. In four years, he has consistently produced between 27 and 36 points, while improving every year.
Rielly’s defense has been criticized, but I think that’s unfair. This past season he was asked to play top-pairing minutes, and given a rookie partner whose game is most certainly not about defense.
Despite that, Rielly did well. During his four seasons in Toronto, his three most played-with partners are Zaitsev, Hunwick and Polak – not exactly the ideal guys you want playing with a prized draft pick.
Last season Rielly and Zaitsev were a 49.2% CF pairing, but when Rielly got away from Zaitsev, he jumped to a very impressive 52%. Same thing the year before – he was under 48% with Hunwick and jumped to 52% when he was with anyone else. This shows that if Rielly is ever paired with someone as good as he is, that he will excel.
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The HBO Documentary leading up to the Winter Classic showed that Rielly is the de facto captain of the Maple Leafs, and a leader among their young core.
I fully realize that ranking Rielly this high on the list is completely subjective, and based off his potential more than anything else. Certainly he doesn’t have seven seasons on the team and a place among the all-time leaders like Al Iafrate. I selected Rielly this high because I believe he has the potential to be an all-time great of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Next: Morgan Rielly Is Better Than You Think
Everyone says the Leafs need a “true #1” defenseman, but I think they might just have that already in Rielly. The team has been terrible since he’s gotten here, he’s had three different coaches and no good partner. Despite that, he’s been a consistent offensive producer while earning the trust of Mike Babcock to play tough minutes.
Look for him to break out and start to scratch the surface of his potential this season.