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The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to welcome defenseman Morgan Rielly back to the lineup tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He missed the last four games with an upper-body injury.
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Rielly's return comes at an ideal time, with the Leafs jostling for playoff positioning down the stretch.
“I just want to come in and help the team and pick up where I left off,” Morgan Rielly said after morning skate. “It’s not always easy coming back but it hasn’t been that long so I don’t expect any issues.”
The stalwart blue liner declined to specify the nature of his upper-body ailment, which sidelined him for the previous four contests. Earlier this season, Rielly also missed five games due to a suspension for cross-checking Ottawa's Ridly Greig.
With Rielly ready to go, veteran Mark Giordano will be the odd man out on defense tonight.
Re-inserting Morgan Rielly, who has 51 points in 65 games this season, provides a boost to Toronto's back end.
Morgan Rielly's Tampa Bay Lightning vs Toronto Maple Leafs: Odds and prediction
The Tampa Bay Lightning (41-26-7) visits the Toronto Maple Leafs (43-22-9) tonight at Scotiabank Arena at 7 p.m. ET in a matchup between two teams in the Eastern Conference.
Toronto defeated the Florida Panthers 6-4 at home on Monday, while Tampa Bay fell 4-2 to the Detroit Red Wings at home. The Maple Leafs have an upper hand in the all-time series with a 62-37-2-8 record against the Lightning.
Toronto has won 29 of 47 games when favored and 22 of 36 with odds shorter than -131. Given their home-ice advantage, the Maple Leafs likely have around a 57% chance of winning tonight.
Tampa Bay has been underdogs 29 times this season and has 12 upsets. The Lightning are 9-7 when getting odds of +111 or greater, giving them roughly a 47% chance at pulling off the road victory.
The game can be seen live on ESPN+, BSSUN, SN and TVAS. The contest can be heard on 102.5 The Bone and CJCL Sportsnet 590 The Fan.
