"Whole narrative is dumb, overblown, overrated": NHL analyst shares brutally honest take on Morgan Rielly, urges Maple Leafs to get 'offensive D-man'

Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly has not had a great start to his 2024-25 campaign. In his 12th NHL season, the 30-year-old has recorded 20 points (5 goals, 15 assists) in 44 games with a -14 rating in 21:24 of ice time per game.

This has Rielly on pace for just 37 points, which would be his lowest full-season total since the 2016-17 season. He has also seen his minutes decrease under new head coach Craig Berube. His average time-on-ice per game is the lowest of his career, dating back to 2014-15.

His lack of offense, particularly on the power play, has led to frustration throughout the fanbase. Former NHLer Carlo Colaiacovo shared his thoughts on "First Up" on Tuesday.

"Morgan Rielly is the guy that's getting paid seven and a half million dollars. Why? Why? Why is, why is all this narrative that we got, the Leafs have to find a partner for Morgan Rielly? How about Morgan Rielly be the leader on defense and be the, and be the guy that actually drags his partner into the fight? I just, this whole narrative is dumb. It's overblown, it's overrated, it's just, I don't see the need for it," Colaiacovo said.

He then brought up the idea of adding an offensive defenseman into the mix to push Rielly down to the second power-play unit for good.

"They need to go out and get an offensive defenseman that can run the power play. Because for seven-plus years, they've allowed Morgan Rielly to be that guy. And within those seven years, every year, they're looking for a guy that could replace him as a shooting threat on that power play, and they try different guys, nothing's ever worked," Colaiacovo added.

Should the Maple Leafs' number one unit continue to struggle, they could certainly be in the market for an offensive defenseman before the March 7th trade deadline.

Morgan Rielly has been a part of the Maple Leafs power-play woes

Rielly has flip-flopped on and off the Maple Leafs' number-one power-play unit this season. He and Matthews Knies have swapped places several times, yet nothing has changed. Toronto sits tied for 18th in the NHL on the man advantage at 20.6%.

With the amount of high-end talent the Leafs possess, a power play below league average is unacceptable. Rielly has just seven power-play points (one goal, six assists) on the year and lacks the ability to be a threat to score from the point.

He and the Maple Leafs will look to get the power play back on track starting Tuesday against the Dallas Stars. The puck drops at 7 p.m. EST at Scotiabank Arena.