There is a real possibility that the Toronto Maple Leafs will trade Morgan Rielly this off-season. With Rielly needing a change of scenery, but owning trade protection, here are some examples of trades of a similar situation to Rielly, and what he could fetch for the Leafs if he gets dealt.
Real conversations are happening regarding defenseman Morgan Rielly and his future with the Toronto Maple Leafs. After 13 seasons in Toronto, and the longest active tenured player for the team, it could be the end of the line for Rielly and the Maple Leafs this off-season.
However, a breakup between both parties isn't as simple as it may seem, and that's because of Rielly's contract. The 32-year-old is entering the fifth year of an eight-year contract and earns $7.5 million against the salary cap. In addition, he has a no-move clause in his deal, which allows the player to dictate where he goes next if he were to get traded.
With all that in mind, the complications of Rielly's situation and contract would factor into a potential trade and could hinder what the Maple Leafs receive, depending on the trade partner and what that other team may be interested in.
To anticipate what Toronto should expect in return if they dealt Rielly this summer, let's go through some previous examples of notable defensemen on unpopular contracts that were traded, or players who had trade protection and got moved anyway in recent memory.
It doesn't take a deep search to find a recent example of when a player with a no-move clause was traded. In fact, it happened before last year's Olympic break when the New York Rangers traded Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings.
Because Panarin had a say in where he wanted to end up, the Rangers were practically forced into a deal in which they probably could've garnered more assets elsewhere if Panarin had no trade protection.
In the end, New York received a solid prospect in Liam Greentree, as well as a 2026 third-round pick and a 2028 fourth-round pick.
It's worth noting that Panarin's situation is very different, considering he was on an expiring deal and is a top-five scorer in the NHL over the course of the past decade. Nonetheless, that's how a no-move clause can affect the return in a trade.
There are multiple other ways to go about trading a player with a no-move clause or with an unpopular contract. Salary retention can certainly help with that.
The Florida Panthers acquired defenseman Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks in 2024-25. Jones' game was really dropping in the latter stages of his tenure in Chicago, and at his $9.5-million cap hit.
However, the Panthers found a way to get Jones with the Blackhawks retaining $2.5 million of his contract. In the process, Florida sent goaltender Spencer Knight and a 2026 first-round pick. That's quite the return for Jones, who was coming off some of the worst campaigns of his NHL career in Chicago.
And though many teams would be hesitant to retain any salary on a long-term contract like Jones' (expires after 2029-30), it doesn't mean something can't be worked out. Like Jones, Rielly's contract also expires through the 2029-30 season with a no-movement clause attached.
Another defenseman who was once in a similar situation to Rielly is Jacob Trouba of the Anaheim Ducks. Although this deal comes without salary retention.
Ahead of the 2019-20 season, Trouba inked a seven-year contract with the Rangers at $8 million per season. Not long after, it would be seen that Trouba did not play up to his dollar value, and when a highly-paid player can't perform to expectations, questions come to the surface.
Eventually, Trouba was traded to the Ducks through his 15-team no-trade list at the time, and New York didn't receive much in return. The Rangers received defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a fourth-round pick in the 2025 draft.
There is a wide range of what can go down when a player needs a change of scenery. Sometimes, both parties in a trade walk away happy, or the team parting with the big-name player is handicapped by a bad contract or a trade-protection clause.
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