Morgan Rielly holds the key to a Zach Werenski trade and time is working against John Chayka

Morgan Rielly's contract could clear the way for Zach Werenski but with an Atlantic rival as a top destination, it seems the clock's working against John Chayka.

This offseason there was a lot of talk surrounding Zach Werenski given that reports showed that he was asking out of Columbus and would entertain a move elsewhere. That was seemingly blown out of proportion with Werenski fully committing to Columbus but we're going to have to see how things play out.

There's no trade on the horizon just yet, though you can really never say never when it comes to today's modern game and John Chakya won't be shy about pulling the trigger if it makes his team better.

Toronto still has a shot at Werenski but they may not have enough time

Werenski would be no doubt the best defenceman Toronto would see since perhaps Borje Salming. He's an elite two-way player and his offensive capabilities can reach absurd heights especially with the firepower of the Maple Leafs.

In his Norris-winning campaign, Werenski had 81 points in 75 games (22 goals, 59 assists) while adding a plus-7, 94 blocks, and only 18 PIM. His career numbers are stellar as well, with 465 points in 642 games (135 goals, 330 assists) and 842 blocks with a plus-11.

But they also are going up against the clock. Not only do they have to worry about Werenski getting comfortable back in Columbus, but also have to hope that the Blue Jackets don't get hot, and also find a way to outbid the Tampa Bay Lightning.

We heard in those rumour reports that Werenski was willing to move to Toronto or Tampa Bay, but his preference was the latter. Be it competing more regularly, a financial incentive, or a combination of the two, it's clear that Werenski values winning if he wants to go there.

Though he also wanted to be able to play with his Team USA captain Auston Matthews, and the two maintain a very close relationship. They also share the same agent, so there's also that aspect to the equation (though that could lead to something big later on).

With a full no-movement clause however, he controls his fate and it's more a matter of getting lucky (though Toronto has had no issues there lately).

Morgan Rielly's four-team trade list is slowing everything down

But herein lies the issue. They don't just need to hope for help in the standings, but that they can get Morgan Rielly's deal off the books. He's currently only got four teams he would take a trade to, and we already know that one of those potential places are off limits with San Jose choosing Darnell Nurse.

Until the team can get the $7.5-million salary hit off the books, they can't make really any moves and certainly can't afford a blockbuster. Werenski isn't egregiously more expensive than Rielly but he does need a new deal in 2028 and will be asking for bank.

As much as Toronto doesn't want to add a sweetener in a deal, they may need to and Rielly will need to be a bit more open to some new places to play. We had a report that Pittsburgh was kicking tires and Philadelphia was interested, so he may need to go where he's wanted; not where he wants.

If the two parties are working together to find the best deal for both team and player, then we very well could see a Rielly deal soon. THey'll need to do it if they want to go after Werenski, and the longer Chayka waits, the more likely he'll strike out on his home run swing.

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