Toronto Maple Leafs Should Trade Morgan Rielly

Maple Leafs Need to Trade Morgan Rielly

Trading the 32-year-old defenseman will not be easy. Rielly has a salary cap hit of $7.5 million with four years left on his deal. He also has a full no-movement clause for the next two seasons.

Chayka is expected to meet with Rielly sometime during the summer. It’s unknown if he’ll ask Rielly to waive his NMC or not. Chayka wouldn’t be doing his job if he didn’t at least ask, so we’ll see where things go.

One has to assume that if Rielly is going to waive his NMC, he likely does so if the team is his hometown team, the Vancouver Canucks, or a team that is closer to Vancouver than Toronto. Now, if the Maple Leafs want to maximize the return they get for Rielly, they might have to retain at least 25% of his salary, if not more. Teams can retain up to 50% of a player’s salary.

The Maple Leafs would love to get Rielly’s entire $7.5 million off their books, but that is highly unlikely. Trading Rielly is more about a salary dump than a straight-up trade. Toronto will try to ask for a late first-round pick or an early second-round pick for Rielly. Some salary retention will likely be needed, and the deal is easier if it’s with a team that has multiple picks in the first two rounds of the draft.

Top Three Teams for Rielly Trade

Vancouver Canucks

It is very unlikely that the Canucks trade the 3rd overall pick to the Maple Leafs. However, they do own the Minnesota Wild’s first-round pick, which is currently the 24th overall. Vancouver also holds the 33rd overall pick, which is the first selection of the second round.

The Canucks are Rielly’s hometown team, and they have the cap space to add his full $7.5 million. However, they are in a rebuild, and it’s unclear if he would fit into their plans.

Seattle Kraken

The Kraken are not going to give up the 7th overall pick for Rielly. However, they also hold the Tampa Bay Lightning’s first-round pick, which is currently 26th overall. If that’s still too high for them, they could offer the 38th overall pick.

Like Vancouver, Seattle has the cap space to make a trade for Rielly happen. Playing in Seattle would put the Maple Leafs defenseman closer to home and allow his family more opportunities to watch his games. The Kraken would love to get back to being a competitive team, so Rielly might fit into their plans more than with Vancouver.

Calgary Flames

The Flames hold the 6th overall pick and the Vegas Golden Knights’ first-round pick. At the moment, that pick from Vegas is 28th overall. They also hold four picks in the second round, 35th, 36th, 51st, and 55th overall. The Maple Leafs could try asking for the 35th and 55th overall picks instead of the Vegas first-round pick.

Calgary is also able to take on Rielly’s entire $7.5 million if needed. However, Toronto might be able to nab a better return if they retain 25% ($1.875 million) of cap space. Out of these three teams, Calgary is the only one with six picks in the first two rounds. Toronto would be smart to try and get a hold of two of those picks.