The Maple Leafs and Dallas Stars skated at Scotiabank Arena on Monday.
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Morgan Rielly will suit up in the 950th game of his career on Monday when the Leafs host the Dallas Stars in their home finale. It may be the final time Rielly wears the Maple Leaf in a game in Toronto.
“It’s crossed my mind before,” the 32-year-old defenceman said after posing for the annual team photo. “All athletes have that at some point. They think about that. And so, again, tonight’s no different than that.”
It feels different, though. For the first time since drafting Auston Matthews first overall in 2016, the Leafs will miss the playoffs.
Rielly, who is wrapping up the third season of a seven-year contract, still owns a full no-move clause. But the team is about to hire a new head of hockey operations and changes are expected following a hugely disappointing season.
Will the longest-serving Leaf take an extra moment to soak up the atmosphere on Monday night?
“I think you try to every night,” said Rielly, who was the fifth-overall pick in the 2012 draft. “I don’t think you should take one day or game in this league for granted.”
Craig Berube said it means “everything” to Rielly to be a Maple Leaf.
“He’s been here a long time and he loves it here,” the Leafs coach added. “I don’t think he can think about being anywhere else, personally, after being drafted here and playing here this long and this many games. He’s been a staple here for a long time. It would be hard for him to be thinking about not being a Leaf.”
Rielly insists he has enjoyed playing under the glaring spotlight in Toronto even in tough times.
“It’s an outstanding place to play and a great place to live,” he said. “This organization means a lot to a lot of people so to be a part of it is an honour and I don’t believe that’s lost on anyone in here.”
Rielly is seventh on the franchise games played list, sandwiched between Mats Sundin and Bob Pulford. If he completes his contract in Toronto, Rielly is on track to lead the list.
It’s hard to imagine Rielly playing anywhere other than Toronto.
“I remember him being one of their top d-men for all those years growing up,” said 22-year-old Stars centre Wyatt Johnston, who is a Toronto native that cheered on the Leafs as a kid. “Obviously a lot of memories watching him play so, yeah, I guess that would be weird to see him in a different jersey.”
With a $7.5-million cap hit, Rielly is Toronto’s highest-paid defenceman. His point total is down again this season (from 41 to 36) and his plus-minus is also sagging (from minus-eight to minus-17).
But you never hear Rielly complaining about the Toronto market.
“It can be a grind when the team’s not playing well because you’re losing games, which is the most important thing around here,” Rielly said. “Those challenges always come from within.”
Rielly is an alternate captain and while his play on the ice may be on the decline, the Vancouver native is always lauded for his leadership.
“He’s one of the guys that if you’re a young guy and you wanted to know something or ask somebody something he’d be a guy you’d go and seek out and talk to about things,” Berube said. “Really good human being. He’s been a great teammate here for a long time.”
“Honestly, Mo was such a big part of this team when I was here,” said Stars winger Michael Bunting, who played two seasons in Toronto (2021-23). “He’s such a good leader on and off the ice and I can say confidently everyone in that room absolutely loves Mo. The way he carries himself, how professional he is every single day and how he just preps himself to be the best that he can. I hope for the Leafs’ sake that that’s not his last game.”
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Leafs prospect Ryan Tverberg works out with Rielly in the summer.
“Just showing me the ropes, showing me how a pro comes in every day and works and just how to follow in the footsteps,” the 24-year-old forward said.
Tverberg will make his long-awaited NHL debut on Monday night.
“Just a lot of excitement,” the native of Richmond Hill, Ont. said. “Growing up here especially, just watching them my whole life, it’s going to mean a lot. Just watching them all the time, to be able to step foot on the ice with them, it will be a good time.”
Tverberg will have plenty of friends and family in the crowd to watch him complete an unlikely journey to the NHL. Tverberg was a seventh-round pick (213rd overall) in 2020 and played 160 American Hockey League games over the last four seasons.
“A lot of hard work,” the University of Connecticut product said in reflecting on his path. “Had to go through some injuries. A lot of hardships but, in the end, it will feel pretty good tonight.”
Tverberg skated on the fourth line beside Jacob Quillan and Calle Jarnkrok on Monday morning.
“He’s got speed,” Berube noted. “He’s a tenacious player. He’s got some skill, but his speed and tenacity is what drives him more than anything.”
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Monday is the third straight game featuring a player making their NHL debut for the Leafs. Centre Luke Haymes played for the first time on Thursday while defenceman William Villeneuve opened his account on Saturday.
The addition of some fresh faces has injected some energy into the Leafs room as they play out the stretch.
“All these games are weird when you know you’re out of the playoffs,” winger William Nylander noted.
Even more so when you consider many Leafs fans are hoping the team loses so that they can retain their first-round pick. Toronto will only keep its first pick if it falls in the top five of the draft, otherwise it will go to the rival Boston Bruins to complete last year’s Brandon Carlo trade.
“That’s not in our control,” said winger Matthew Knies. “At least [for] the players in this locker room that’s not really what we’re thinking about. Just trying to have a strong finish and take care of ourselves, stay healthy, yeah, so that’s not really in our thought process.”
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The Leafs will look to rally around rookie goalie Artur Akhtyamov on Monday night as the 24-year-old from Kazan, Russia makes his second career start.
“I love his game,” Leafs goalie Joseph Woll said. “I think he’s sick ... He’s got like that Russian swagger to him. I love watching guys like [Igor] Shesterkin, [Ilya] Sorokin, Vasi [Andrei Vasilevskiy], Bob [Sergei Bobrivsky] and he’s a guy that’s got that same kind of vibe to him. He’s quick. Yeah, I enjoy watching him.”
Akhtyamov allowed five goals on 44 shots to take the loss in his first career start last Thursday in New York against the Islanders. Akhtyamov faced 24 shots in the first period.
“We loved how he battled in that game,” Berube said. “The kid’s got an unreal demeanour. He’s a guy you get attracted to, you know, just from this personality and how he presents himself and carries himself so our guys will be fired up to play hard in front of him.”
“We’re definitely going to want to play better in front of him and give him a chance to win this game,” Knies said. “It’s going to be our last home game too, so just play in front of our fans and try to have a good effort tonight.”
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Despite the disappointing season in Toronto, Knies has set a new career high in points with 64 (23 goals, 41 assists).
“I obviously think there’s ways I could’ve done more, honestly, to get us into a better position and into a playoff spot,” the 23-year-old winger said. “I never look at it from an individual standpoint. I look at it as a team and I feel like we didn’t hit our goals this year and that’s the only way I’m going to look at this season, really.”
Knies has battled through a nagging knee injury for most of the year.
“It definitely didn’t help, but I’ve been playing every game and some pretty heavy minutes in some of those games,” Knies noted. “I don’t think that has been a huge issue.”
While Knies is up six points from last season, he is also down six goals from last year’s total.
“He’s obviously been grinding this year with the injury,” Berube said. “I gotta give him credit for fighting through it through the whole season. That’s not easy to do and it gets annoying more than anything that he’s feeling this way. But that’s the grind, right? You’re not always going to feel great and you gotta find a way to get through it and he’s done that and I’ll give him credit for that. He’s had a pretty good year with the numbers. Scoring’s down from last year a little bit, the goals, but it’s been a grind for him all year.”
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The Leafs are planning to hold their end-of-season media availability on Thursday and Matthews is scheduled to address the media for the first time since sustaining a season-ending injury on March 12.
No member of the team’s management group is expected to be available.
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Lines at Leafs skate on Monday:
Cowan - Tavares - Nylander
Maccelli - Domi - Knies
Lorentz - Haymes - Robertson
Tverberg - Quillan - Jarnkrok
Pezzetta
Rielly - Stecher
Benoit - McCabe
Ekman-Larsson - Villeneuve
Myers
Akhtyamov
Woll
Steven Lorentz celebrates his 30th birthday by leading the stretch at the end of the final home Leafs morning skate of the season @BarDown pic.twitter.com/QZldaPface
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) April 13, 2026
