While the Toronto Maple Leafs are a first-place team in the Atlantic Division, they’ve been having success this season with some inconsistent performances from two very important players.
Forward Max Domi and defenceman Morgan Rielly have been extremely on-and-off this season, with a slight emphasis on the ‘off’, and considering they make $11.25 million combined against the salary cap for the foreseeable future, the Leafs need to find a way to get both players back on track, and soon.
For what it’s worth, Domi has recorded three goals, and 17 points in 41 games this season. While he’s known to be a facilitator, head coach Craig Berube hasn’t been shy about the notion Domi needs to look for his shot more, which will result in becoming more of a threat, allowing him to create more time and space for his linemates. Looking to pass at every opportunity hasn’t worked out so far this season for Domi, who has just 58 shots on goal this year. Berube has also been critical of Domi’s battle level, and his work ethic. TSN’s Mark Masters shared a video during practice on Jan 15, with Berube mentioning afterwards that he wants Domi more engaged on both sides of the puck:
Domi hasn’t scored a goal since Dec.20 and has just six assists in the 16 games since. He’s now been moved over to the wing, while rookie centre Fraser Minten has been recalled, and with all the trade speculation about the Maple Leafs being interested in a middle-six centre, it’s becoming more obvious by the day that the Leafs’ brass is unsure of what Domi’s role will be heading into the playoff push. Auston Matthews, a healthy John Tavares, and David Kampf are locked in down the middle of the lineup, meanwhile, Domi is starting to be shuffled around without a ‘home’.
Rielly, on the other hand, makes $7.5 million AAV through the 2029-30 season, and considering he hardly kills penalties, and has just seven power-play points, while seeing an average of 2:15 of ice-time with the man advantage, it’s going to be very important for the Maple Leafs to get him back on track. Rielly plays huge minutes, and of late, hasn’t been taking good angles, keeps losing his man in front, closing time and space is a concern, and frankly, hasn’t performed at all to the best of his abilities.
Admittedly, plus/minus is a quirky stat as you can be on the ice for two seconds and receive a minus-1, but it shouldn’t go unnoticed that Rielly is minus-16 on the season, the worst rating by far on the Maple Leafs, despite the Leafs having a +11 goal differential. Yes, playing over 20 minutes a game can certainly influence this, however, for what it’s worth Chris Tanev is a plus-16. Berube paired them together to start the season but has shied away from putting the duo together of late. The Leafs’ bench boss should be reconsidering his pairings.
While GM Brad Treliving has been linked to finding help up front before the trade deadline on March 7, don’t be surprised if the Maple Leafs acquire another veteran/battle-tested defenceman. Rielly, despite his hefty cap hit, is not playing like a top-pair blueliner, isn’t making himself a threat on the power play, and in order to get the Maple Leafs over the hump and into a deep Stanley Cup Playoff run, Toronto should be considering moving Rielly down the lineup and into better matchups.
At the end of the day, the Leafs are in first place, but there’s no doubt holes exist within their lineup. The inconsistencies of Domi and Rielly are a massive issue. Treliving, Berube, and company will need to get creative to ensure the team is getting consistent production from the duo, who again, make up over $11-million in cap space.
