Leafs Officially Set Their Expectations for What They Want to See From Morgan Rielly
Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski | Imagn images
Ahead of the Maple Leafs' pre-season game on Thursday, Leafs head coach Craig Berube revealed what he expects of Morgan Rielly for the upcoming season.
It was a down year for the longest tenured Leafs player last season. Not only did Morgan Rielly struggle offensively, losing his spot on the top power-play unit, but he made some errors defensively that we weren't accustomed to seeing so frequently from the former first-round pick.
At the end of the season, Brad Treliving had a very difficult conversation with him about what the Leafs needed and expected.
Rielly, being the ultimate pro that he is, took it to heart and completely changed his off-season program - even spending all of his summer in Toronto instead of going back to Vancouver.
Craig Berube Reveals What the Leafs Need From Morgan Rielly This Season
Ahead of Thursday's pre-season game, Craig Berube spoke with reporters where he was asked what a successful season would entail for the 31-year-old.
"Nothing different than what he has always been told. He is a good power-play player. He has been a good power play guy here for a long time. He needs to establish his shot more than anything. Getting a shot from the top early in the power play does a lot of good. He has to make sure that he is a threat up top to shoot the puck when he has opportunities. He can't always want to distirbute all of the time. We do need him to move it and distribute it to the flanks at times, but he has to be a shooter."
Last night, Rielly did just that, getting a shot through on the power-play that led to Auston Matthews potting the first goal of the game.
It's not a major change for Rielly, but something fans have been begging him to do for years. Hopefully, last night was a sign of things to come for him this season.
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