388 games played. The third-longest tenured active Leaf, after Jake Gardiner and Nazem Kadri, he’s been with the team through its ups and downs. He played for the 30th-place Leafs, but also was a huge factor in the 7th-place Leafs.

Rielly played top-pairing minutes and was second on the Leafs’ defensemen in 5v5 TOI% adjusted for competition, behind only Hainsey. Rielly is liked by Babcock, but more importantly, trusted.

He also improves the team, with a relative CF% of 1.93, which ranks 4th on the Leafs (for players with 50+ games played) and leads defensemen (with 50+ games played). He also significantly improves Hainsey’s stats at 5v5. Together, they have a CF% of 49.39, but without each other, Hainsey’s CF% drops to 42.86 and Rielly’s skyrockets to 56.14.

All in all, Morgan Rielly is an experienced and responsible player who can be trusted to help the people around him succeed.

Captaincy in Toronto

Image from NHL.com

Toronto is a huge market with demanding fans and massive media outlets, and being the captain of this team takes a lot. Just look at what happened with Jake Gardiner after game 7.

Over the past 5 seasons, Rielly has become experienced with the city and has had experience as an alternate. He regularly talks to the refs and has served as a role model for the youth.

Plus, think of all the respect he gained from the Zdeno Chara slapshot.

Video from Sportsnet YouTube channel

Tavares, Matthews, or Rielly?

Honestly, this debate is a good problem to have. We have three excellent leaders who are all worthy of the title.

Tavares has 6 years of experience as the captain of the Islanders and has thrived in an enormous media similar to Toronto’s. He’s someone who can undoubtedly influence his teammates and will be helpful to the team no matter what.

Matthews is a generational talent who seemed like the consensus future captain, until John Tavares arrived. He’s an excellent player and will be a great leader for years to come.

Rielly is a experienced Leaf who has been a leader on this team for a while now. Individually, he has grown and matured and is responsible enough for a higher role on this team.