Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly hit an incredible milestone in the Leafs win over the Montreal Canadiens on November 9th. During the second period, Rielly recorded an assist on William Nylander's power-play goal. That assist helped Rielly become only the third Leafs defenseman to record 400 assists.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have had many great defensemen throughout the team's long history, but only Borje Salming (620), and Tomas Kaberle (437) have more assists than Rielly. He is on pace for 41 assists this season, putting him at 433. There is a good chance that Rielly will do better than expected and pass Kaberle on the Leafs all-time assists list for defensemen. (All stats from hockey-reference.com)
Rielly is the longest-tenured player on the current Leafs roster. Drafted 5th overall in the 2012 NHL draft, Rielly began his Leafs in the 2013-14 season. He is in his 12th season with the Leafs and has played 808 games. Rielly is signed for four more seasons after this one, so if he can stay healthy, he will reach 1,000 games easily.
There is an excellent chance that Rielly will become only the second Leafs defenseman to record 500 assists. Reaching 600 assists, let alone 621 to pass Salming seems unlikely. However, if Rielly 's production doesn't decline too much, who knows what his overall stats will be?
Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly not finished yet
Rielly will be 31 at the start of next season, so his best years are behind him, but he did register 58 points last season. The Leafs should manage to get decent production out of Rielly for the next few seasons. His current contract ends after the 2029-30 season.
(Contract information from puckpedia.com)
There are times when Rielly receives more grief from fans than necessary but at the end of the day, he will end his career as one of the best defensemen in Leafs history. Hopefully, before the time comes for him to retire, the Leafs win a championship to be the icing on the cake for his career.
So, whether he's your favorite Leafs defenseman or not, it's still important to acknowledge what he's accomplished during his career with the Leafs.
Rielly will go down as one of the Leafs best once he retires. He will rightfully have his number 44 retired to the rafters eventually as well. For now, he looks to help the Leafs continue to have a strong November and a productive 2024-25 season.