After stepping up to defend his team's honor, Morgan Rielly has entered the lineup and hasn't disrupted the Leafs' mojo.
After stepping up to defend his team's honor, Morgan Rielly has entered the lineup and hasn't disrupted the Leafs' mojo.
DENVER — When the Toronto Maple Leafs improved to 5-0-0 without Morgan Rielly in the lineup, the defenseman admitted he was nervous coming back in.
The team's top defender didn't want to disrupt the good vibes. And he hasn't, helping his team pick up additional wins against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday and the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday.
"I was definitely nervous about coming in because the team was rolling so that," Rielly said following the team's 4-3 win against the Avalanche. "I’m grateful we got two wins."
Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe reduced the defenseman's minutes upon his return. With TJ Brodie and Timothy Liljegren both showing great improvement as a defense pair in Rielly's absence while Jake McCabe and Simon Benoit have already established themselves as a solid pair, Keefe paired Rielly with a returning William Lagesson.
It may not be the right long-term solution and all reports suggest the Leafs are looking to pick up another right-shot defenseman. who can pair with Rielly, for now, it works.
In 18:19 of 5-on-5 ice time against the Avalanche, Rielly had an expected goals-for percentage of 76 percent, according to NaturalStatTrick.com, the highest of any Leaf players and highest among any Leafs defenseman.
"He’s only going to make it better for us," Leafs forward Mitch Marner said of Rielly. "I think that’s always the first reaction when you miss a couple of games and the team’s still rolling without you. You come back and you’re kind of scared because you don’t want to mess up the mojo and everyone’s a little superstitious in their own way. He’s only going to help our team to get better and he’s done that the last two games."
Rielly missed the club's first five games of the winning streak after he was suspended for cross-checking Ridly Greig in the face. Rielly sought retribution on the Ottawa Senators forward after the player took a slapshot into an empty net. The moment could have been disastrous for Toronto. Instead, they are on their longest winning streak in over 20 years.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QW1pqSHmMzY[/embed]
"The nature of why he left our lineup, I think his fingerprints are all over this streak that we’ve put together here and how the team has played," Keefe said of Rielly. :"It started with him and thrilled that the guys haven't taken a step back with him coming back in."
The 29-year-old has seven goals and 36 assists in 52 games this season.
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