Latest Maple Leafs Move Leaves Morgan Rielly Situation Very 'Awkward'

We're now well into the summer, and Morgan Rielly is still a Toronto Maple Leaf. It's been clear to the longest-tenured Leaf that the team wants to move on from him, and he has reluctantly provided a short list of Western-based teams that he would consider for a trade. But then the Leafs released their official 2026-27 'Home Opener' poster on social media on Wednesday, and guess who's featured among the 10 players pictured?

Wake me up when September (almost) ends* 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/ed4DuZkZn5

— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) July 15, 2026

Yup. There's Rielly, along with the likes of Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares (and yes, Matthew Knies, too, by the way). Clearly, the Leafs are still considering Rielly a part of their team, despite their frantic efforts to try and trade him. 

Rielly's inclusion in Leafs' Opening Night poster is 'awkward'

As beat writer Dave Feschuk notes in The Toronto Star, "This is beginning to get awkward."

It was thought that the San Jose Sharks would be an ideal landing spot for Rielly, given their West Coast location and their need for blueliners and cap-space fillers entering the offseason. But they opted in favor of acquiring another beleaguered veteran defender instead, Darnell Nurse from the Edmonton Oilers. 

With teams having done a lot of their spending already, whether in free agency or in trades, there aren't a lot of clubs that can (and want to) take on Rielly's $7.5 million cap hit for another four years. Some retention by Toronto would likely be needed at this point if a deal were still to be found. 

Feschuk points out that Rielly's decline over the past two years could potentially be related to then-head coach Craig Berube's new system, and Rielly himself has alluded to that. 

But whatever the case may be, it's come down to a point where if he's still around come the fall, while knowing the team wants to move on from him, it would be a less-than-optimal situation.

"Rielly’s uneasy off-season has a chance to bleed into a potentially awkward autumn if the Leaf most often mentioned in trade speculation is still residing in Toronto come training camp."