The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of those “fun” teams in the NHL. They have a lot of sweet personalities amongst their star players. They are also very fun when they are playing their type of game.
With guys like Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Mitch Marner, and John Tavares leading their forward group that can be so exciting at times. Their problem is that their depth up front and on defense lets them down at times.
They are a Wild Card team at the moment as a result of these issues. Things are going to be a little bit harder for them for a while too. One of their best players is going to be taking a seat for a handful of games.
Morgan Rielly has been suspended for five games due to a play that happened on Saturday night. During the game, Ottawa Senators forward Ridley Greig used a slapshot to score a goal from up close.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are going to be without Morgan Rielly for a bad play
Rielly saw that as disrespectful so he decided to cross-check Greig in the head. That is just not something that the league is going to be okay with. He was suspended for five games by the Department of Player Safety.
Toronto’s Morgan Rielly has been suspended for five games for cross-checking Ottawa’s Ridly Greig. https://t.co/4PzrR8N5FD
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) February 13, 2024
This is a big loss for the Toronto Maple Leafs as he is their top defenseman. He plays big minutes in all situations for Toronto. A team in their position did not need this.
This is the 29-year-old’s 11th NHL season and this is his first time receiving any kind of supplemental discipline. He is not even close to a dirty player but he made one bad decision and it is going to cost him a few games.
Rielly served the first game of his suspension on Tuesday night when the Leafs hosted the red-hot St. Louis Blues. Remarkably, they were winners 4-1 without Rielly. They needed a big win like that to give themselves some confidence over the rest of his suspension.