Ex-NHL executive berates Leafs' Morgan Rielly in fiery rant over his outing in loss to Red Wings

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost 3-1 to the Detroit Red Wings in the first of two preseason clashes, on Oct. 3. Star defenseman Morgan Rielly was on the ice for all three goals Toronto conceded, and ended the game with a plus-minus of -3., despite Anthony Stolarz's 40-save performance.

Doug MacLean, ex-NHL executive with the Columbus Blue Jackets & Florida Panthers, and current Sportsnet broadcaster, berated Morgan Rielly for his performance in the loss to the Red Wings.

During his appearance on Oct. 4's Real Kyper and Bourne show, MacLean went on a rant about the Maple Leafs' poor performance, and singled out Morgan Rielly's terrible defensive outing.

(8:55): "Put (Morgan) Reilly up on forward. He’s lost it on defense. He can't play defense. What are you going to do with him? .... He's lost on the blue line, sorry," said MacLean.

MacLean leaned further on the Maple Leafs' overral terrible defensive showing in the loss, on the back of Anthony Stolarz's heroics with 40 saves. He sarcastically questioned Stolarz's availability for the first game of the regular season, after his intense effort on Oct. 3's preseason game.

(9:39) "Is Stolarz going to be okay for game one? Is he alright? That was painful. I could only watch two periods. I had to shut it off. They were awful last night. It was pathetic to watch," said MacLean.

Also read: NHL analyst pegs Maple Leafs to be "worse" in the regular season with Mitch Marner's exit breaking up Toronto's Core Four

"Just sloppy": Morgan Rielly gave his two cents on the Maple Leafs' 3-1 loss to the Red Wings

Following the loss on Oct. 3, Morgan Rielly gave his opinion of the Maple Leafs' showing, in potentially the one game which saw all of Toronto's stars and full-time roster, suit up for a preseason game. Forwards Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, Matthew Knies and defensemen Chris Tanev, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, including Morgan Rielly played a ton of minutes on Thursday night's game.

“If you look at our game tonight, I thought it was just sloppy. We turned it over too many times, and they were able to come through with speed and control. So, there’s lots of areas to work on," said Rielly.

Despite the 3-1 loss, in which the Maple Leafs were outshot 43-19 by the Red Wings, Morgan Rielly remained calm about that particular loss affecting the Maple Leafs' start to the regular season.

“We still have time to work stuff out. So I don’t think there’s any reason to be too worried about it,” said Rielly.

Also read: HC Craig Berube hurls F-bombs at Toronto Maple Leafs players during do-or-die playoff game in FaceOff: Inside the NHL sneak peak

The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to take on the Red Wings again on Oct. 5, in Detroit. This will be the final preseason game for both teams, before the puck drop of the 2025-26 NHL regular season on Oct. 7.

About the author

Srihari is an NHL Assistant Content Manager and writer at Sportskeeda with over 2 years of experience. An engineering graduate in electrical and electronics, he spent one year as a Programmer Analyst at Cognizant.

Srihari understands news reports are time-sensitive and to ensure no compromise on quality, he engages in running thorough and extensive research. He includes unique and first-to-market stats after vetting them through sources that are trusted league-wide to give the readers most accurate information. He also boasts of a strong network of NHL reporters and enthusiasts for acquiring valuable information.

The Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs are Srihari’s favorite teams in the NHL. He likes players who are eye-catching with their skills and speed, and believes Oilers star duo Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and Leafs' Auston Matthews are three of the best players in today's game.

When he’s not writing or watching the NHL, he binges on highlights of NBA games. He also loves to play outdoor sports like cricket, basketball and occasionally soccer. Srihari also plays Valorant, FIFA, Call of Duty and other games in his free time. He hopes to add playing the piano to this list soon.

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Edited by Srihari Anand