Morgan Rielly isn't going anywhere cheap. The Maple Leafs made that clear to other teams this month.
Elliotte Friedman dropped the detail in his July 6 edition of 32 Thoughts. Toronto has told rival clubs it won't pay a big price to move its longest-tenured player.
That's a notable stance for a team that just finished 32-36-14. Toronto sits 28th overall with a minus-46 goal differential, numbers that usually invite a teardown conversation, not a hold-the-line one.
Elliotte Friedman: Re Morgan Rielly: I just heard that Toronto told people they're not paying a big price to move him.
Rielly closed the season with 36 points in 78 games, 11 goals and 25 assists, and a minus-18 rating. Not the trade-bait profile that usually draws suitors lining up.
His recent form doesn't help the sales pitch either. Over his last 10 games he posted just 3 points, and across his final 5 he was held to a single point while going minus-3.
The Leafs stumbled to the finish line too, losing their last game 1-3 at Ottawa while riding a seven-game skid and a 2-7-1 mark over their final 10.
New head coach Jim Hiller, hired June 17, inherits a blue line anchored by a $7,500,000 cap hit that isn't walking out the door at a discount.
Why Toronto is holding firm on Rielly's price tag
Think of it like a homeowner refusing to drop the asking price just because the market cooled. Toronto knows what it has in Rielly and isn't panicking into a fire sale.
Is that smart asset management or stubborn pride dressed up as strategy? Hard to say from the outside looking in.
What's clear is this. If Toronto's really drawing a line on price, that trade market for Rielly just got a lot quieter. Other GMs don't chase players who cost full freight and come with diminishing offense.
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Hiller has a full offseason to figure out whether Rielly fits the next version of this roster, or whether Toronto eventually blinks on that asking price once training camp gets closer.
Should the Maple Leafs hold firm on Morgan Rielly's price, even after a last-place finish?
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