Morgan Rielly's rookie season, how would you grade it thus far?

[leburn98]

I think we can all agree that Morgan Rielly has played very well for the Leafs in his rookie season. Sure there are rookie mistakes, but it's clear that Rielly has the tools necessary to be a very good, maybe even elite d-man in the NHL. So just out of curiosity, I decided to take a look back at some of the current great d-men and I found it interesting in some of the similarities between Rielly's rookie season and the rookie seasons of these guys.


Stats (rookie season):

Morgan Rielly: 57GP 2G 19A 21PTS +/- -10
Duncan Keith : 81GP 9G 12A 21PTS +/- -11
Drew Doughty : 81GP 6G 21A 27PTS +/- -17
Erik Karlsson: 60GP 5G 21A 26PTS +/- -5
PK Subban... : 77GP 14G 24A 38PTS +/- -8
Shea Weber.. : 28GP 2G 8A 10PTS +/- 8

Over 82 game season:

Morgan Rielly: 82GP 3G 27A 30PTS +/- -14
Duncan Keith : 82GP 9G 12A 21PTS +/- -11
Drew Doughty : 82GP 6G 21A 27PTS +/- -17
Erik Karlsson: 82GP 7G 29A 36PTS +/- -7
PK Subban... : 82GP 15G 26A 41PTS +/- -8
Shea Weber.. : 82GP 6G 23A 29PTS +/- 23

As you can see, over an 82 game season, Rielly is awfully close to many of these guys. In fact over 82 games, he would be 2nd to Karlsson in Assists. Morgan's main weakness, something that should improve over time, is his goal production. If he could just improve his shot, it's no stretch to see him up there.

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[egd27]

I think we can all agree that Morgan Rielly has played very well for the Leafs in his rookie season. Sure there are rookie mistakes, but it's clear that Rielly has the tools necessary to be a very good, maybe even elite d-man in the NHL. So just out of curiosity, I decided to take a look back at some of the current great d-men and I found it interesting in some of the similarities between Rielly's rookie season and the rookie seasons of these guys.


Stats (rookie season):



Over 82 game season:

As you can see, over an 82 game season, Rielly is awfully close to many of these guys. In fact over 82 games, he would be 2nd to Karlsson in Assists. Morgan's main weakness, something that should improve over time, is his goal production. If he could just improve his shot, it's no stretch to see him up there.

Or his defensive play? What with him being a d-man and all.

 

[Stats01]

Or his defensive play? What with him being a d-man and all.

Yeah but that will come in time, overall he looks really good. I hope he can keep developing and become a #1-#2 D-man in 3-4 years. He has the potential to be special.

 

[NoTouchIcing]

Yeah but that will come in time, overall he looks really good. I hope he can keep developing and become a #1-#2 D-man in 3-4 years. He has the potential to be special.

I think he's played fantastic, given the expectations cast upon him. The biggest (and perhaps only) concern I have with him is his shot selection, given he is an offensive, play-making defenseman. He shoots it high, high, high every single time, which isn't conducive to creating rebounds or goals.

 

[Holymakinaw]

I think Rielly's done GREAT for a 19/20 year old, with no prior NHL experience. He definitely has the tools to become a star D-Man in this league, and is showing some real poise out there.

I think soon we're going to be freaking out about how good this guy is.

 

[nsleaf]

He's been great for a young kid. Blue chip potential for sure. Only expect him to get better in all aspects of the game.

 

[Stats01]

I think Rielly's done GREAT for a 19/20 year old, with no prior NHL experience. He definitely has the tools to become a star D-Man in this league, and is showing some real poise out there.

I think soon we're going to be freaking out about how good this guy is.

Same here. Legit #1 potential.

 

[Frelimo]

I don't think he's been poor defensively. I trust him more at that end then Franson and Gardiner (which I know isn't saying much). I also think he's improved in this area as the season has progressed, so I'm confident he'll develop into a solid player defensively.

 

[Stats01]

I think he's played fantastic, given the expectations cast upon him. The biggest (and perhaps only) concern I have with him is his shot selection, given he is an offensive, play-making defenseman. He shoots it high, high, high every single time, which isn't conducive to creating rebounds or goals.

Well someone better get him away from Dion then. We don't want young Rielly to get Phaneufitis.

 

[Frelimo]

If we make the playoffs though (I don't want to jinx it), it will be interesting to see how much ice time he'll see.

 

[TootooTrain]

B+

His situational reads are what I've been impressed with the most. When to jump in the rush, when to stay back. When to pinch, etc. Producing at a decent clip as a 19/20yo rookie. Has great wheels. Despite all that, the one thing I've been most impressed by is his defensive play along the boards. He doesn't seem like he should be able to pin and separate some of these big bodies, but he does it. Plays his angles well, so the support player can pick up the puck. And because he's only required to play 15-16-17 minutes, I haven't really noticed any fatigue (knock on wood). He's a keeper.

 

[HEAVY DUTY]

B- or B at best.

really impressed with his performance. great skater, hopefully his defensive and offensive games comes together in the next couple of years. hoping we can groom him much better than we did with luke schenn.

 

[NoTouchIcing]

Well someone better get him away from Dion then. We don't want young Rielly to get Phaneufitis.

The difference is that Dion's shot is heavy and when it's on net, has the potential to blow the goalie's head off. I haven't seen that from @moriles4 yet.

 

[Michael Gary Scott]

C or C+ probably? Shown flashes of greatness but hasnt done it consistently. Wasnt expecting him to break camp so this season is gravy.

 

[Ace88*]

I'd give him a B overall. His defensive play has come such a long way since the beginning of the season, last night especially showed why. Smart, smart kid and has great hand-eye coordination.

Next season im expecting around 40 points and a +/- closer to 0 to +5.

 

[LeafsNation149]

B, he hasnt been too great but he's a rookie. If he just improves his shot and defence he would be a much better player

 

[SprDaVE]

C+

Inconsistent. Good at times, really bad at times.

 

[Duke Silver]

C+. Can't wait to see this kid get more confidence.

 

[Diatomic]

B. I really like where he's going and this season he's gained my trust over gardiner surprisingly.

 

[Clark4Ever]

A lot of harsh grades in my opionion.

The kid has performed well above expectations considering that it's his rookie season. He has been given difficult assignments and considerable ice time, yet he has been one of our steadiest defencemen thus far.

I would give him at least a B+

 

[indigobuffalo]

Overall I would rate him a B-.

He's got the wheels, and definitely stronger on the puck than Gardiner, as a comparison, which is exactly how he was hyped, but the lack of goal scoring is the key concern. I think defensive acumen grows over time, that part of the game can be taught, but offensive skills can't, and he hasn't exactly burned the lamp out.

I think he still gets enough chances and with experience hopefully he will learn to find more seams and patience to find the best shots, but as is he still has a lot of room to improve.

 

[ACC1224]

A for me. He's exceeded my expectation.

Look forward to the day when he's paired with Phanuef.

 

[Grant]

B-

He has been good, for a rookie. I still see a lot of things that could use improvement. These being things such as shot (harder), defensive ability (he has shown great improvement in this regard, still needs work though), offensive zone pressure (too often I see him lead the rush, which is fantastic, but it always seems that nothing ever ends up coming from the play, either because he doesn't know what to do with the puck when he gets there or because everyone else on our team is changing so there is no support).

He does many things to make you think that he can be a special player, but he needs to improve on these facets of his game and more to become that player.

 

[Stats01]

B- or B at best.

really impressed with his performance. great skater, hopefully his defensive and offensive games comes together in the next couple of years. hoping we can groom him much better than we did with luke schenn.

Luke Schenn didn't need grooming, he is what he is. He hasn't changed since he was drafted. He was always a bottom pairing D-man, he hasn't changed at all in Philly.

 

[Stats01]

Overall I would rate him a B-.

He's got the wheels, and definitely stronger on the puck than Gardiner, as a comparison, which is exactly how he was hyped, but the lack of goal scoring is the key concern. I think defensive acumen grows over time, that part of the game can be taught, but offensive skills can't, and he hasn't exactly burned the lamp out.

I think he still gets enough chances and with experience hopefully he will learn to find more seams and patience to find the best shots, but as is he still has a lot of room to improve.

He's a 19 year old kid. The scoring will come. Man o man. "He hasn't exactly burned the lamp out" Uhmm were you really expecting him to in his rookie season?