Former Maple Leafs defenseman calls out Toronto over Morgan Rielly situation

The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of the franchises most active this offseason, but they still have a pending issue to resolve ahead of the 2026-27 NHL season.

It's unclear what the long-term future of defenseman Morgan Rielly is, and doubts about the player have begun to bother fans and other observers.

Toronto insider and former Maple Leafs defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo is the latest to directly criticize the franchise for the expectations around Rielly, 32.

Maple Leafs called out by Carlo Colaiacovo over Morgan Rielly role

"I've defended Morgan Rielly to some of the people in the public where, you know, they're adamant that they have to get rid of him," Colaiacovo said on TSN's "First Up".

"You don't just get rid of a good hockey player for the sake of getting rid of him. The reason why people feel the way they do about Morgan Rielly is because this organization has expected him to be a number one defenseman for the last two or three seasons, and he's just... he's not fit to be that guy. Morgan Rielly as your three, four, five, six defenseman? That's a really good defenseman! You can't expect him to be your number one guy."

Rielly is currently entering the fifth year of an eight-year deal with the Maple Leafs, with a cap hit of $7.5 million and a total value of $60 million.

Since signing that deal, he appeared in 65 games during the 2022-23 season, 72 games during the following campaign, 82 appearances during the 2024-25 season, and 78 games last season, scoring 11 goals and adding 25 assists for 36 total points.

It is clear he's been one of the team's key pieces in recent years, and it wouldn't be a bad idea for the front office to do some introspective criticism of how they have handled Rielly's situation.