Morgan Rielly believes in Mike Babcock.

The Toronto Maple Leafs' stud defenseman told Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun what he thought about his new head coach on Thursday.

"We’re really looking forward to getting back to training camp with a new attitude and a clean slate, changing things up," Rielly said. "When your team hires a guy like Mike, it’s all extremely positive, which is a nice change for us."

The former first-round pick, who was one of the bright spots in a dismal season for Toronto, believes Babcock will be a game-changer for the Maple Leafs.

"It changes a lot," Rielly said. "There is always talk about the rebuild and that’s important, but I think it improves our chances of having a rebuild the right way when you have a coach like Mike Babcock.

"He has a pretty good idea of what he wants to do and I know all the players are willing to buy in and do it the right way. He’s a coach all players respect and that’s great for us."

Despite a rebuild in the Maple Leafs' future, Rielly believes the team will improve upon a 30-44-8 record simply by having their new coach supporting them behind the bench.

"There’s no excuses," Rielly explained. "When you have a coach like Mike Babcock, your team improves automatically. Players will want to come to play in Toronto and really embrace the role of playing for the Leafs.

"We’re happy to have him on board."

The 21-year-old recorded eight goals and 21 assists in 81 games.