Morgan Rielly’s return to the Maple Leafs for Tuesday’s road game against the Dallas Stars won’t be known until the morning skate, but other changes could be up with Toronto’s defence as it regrouped from the all-star break.
Rielly was able to work with regular partner Nikita Zaitsev on Monday at practice, but the ripple effect saw veteran Matt Hunwick paired with frequent scratch Frank Corrado; Martin Marincin was in Hunwick’s usual spot with Roman Polak. Jake Gardiner and Connor Carrick remain the same.
“I don’t have to decide until tomorrow,” head coach Mike Babcock said when asked how Rielly’s return will affect his lineup plans. “But if (Morgan) is back, it’s a real boost.”
Rielly has been out since early in the Jan. 17 win over Buffalo with an ankle/leg injury. The Leafs beat the Sabres that night and have a record of 3-2-1 overall without one of their best workhorse blue liners. Hunwick-Polak had been one of their most scrutinized pairings, especially with Marincin out for 17 games through much of December and January.
It was thought Rielly was just being cautious in using the four extra days provided by the all-star break to be 100 per cent for the Dallas game, but he isn’t ready to pronounce himself ready.
“I got a little bit ahead of myself, tried to skate a little too soon,” Rielly said. “But the training staff here is great and they pulled me off pretty quick. I’ve come a long way since then. I just want to get back and help the team.”
Centre Auston Matthews will join the team in Dallas on Monday night after being Toronto’s lone representative at the all-star game in Los Angeles. Goalie Frederik Andsersen, named one of the NHL’s stars of the week for his consecutive shutouts against the Calgary Flames and Detroit Red Wings, likely gets the start against Dallas.
Tuesday begins a busy cycle of 17 games for the Leafs up to March 3, as they make up their many games in hand, beginning and ending with road trips to the Western Conference. They’ll return to playoff position if they parlay those games in hand into points.
“(Expectations) are high,” said Rielly. “We’re happy with where we’re at in the standings — we’ve gone on stretches where we’ve played outstanding and grown a lot as a team.
“We’ve put ourselves in a position where we can really make a push for this. We have a long way to go. (A playoff race) would be a good learning experience, but we’re not approaching this as a chance to learn. We want to be there.”