Morgan Rielly winger talk exposes how uncertain his Maple Leafs role has become

The Hockey Writers recently floated a situational winger role for Morgan Rielly, an unconventional idea that says more about how much Toronto's blueline has changed.

With all the discussion about Morgan Rielly's future with the Toronto Maple Leafs, The Hockey Writers decided to take a stab at what they believe is the best course of action for Rielly. In that, they talked about how his offensive ability to playmake and crash the net as a pinching defender as positives that could help the offence.

Toronto's roster no longer guarantees Morgan Rielly the offensive role he once had

But that creates a lot of defensive issues, so instead they believe that Rielly could follow a similar path to Dustin Byfuglien did and make an important switch to the wing:

There could be situations where Rielly starts in the offensive zone, particularly against bottom-six competition, and is asked to use his passing and offensive instincts rather than carry the same defensive responsibilities he has as a defenceman.

It could even be something the Maple Leafs experiment with on the power play. If Rielly is no longer the obvious choice to quarterback the first unit, perhaps there are other ways to use his ability to distribute the puck.

This wouldn't be a full time position change, but instead a tool that Jim Hiller can use to take advantage of matchups, add another distributor to the power-play without losing Darren Raddysh's shot, and giving Rielly a chance to be a prominent offensive force without the extra defensive responsibilities.

With Raddysh as the new power-play quarterback and puck distributor, Rielly loses his main offensive role. But he could play as a winger on the PP, much like Phil Housley did with the Jets in the 90s.

He would get some time on the second unit, but it wouldn't provide the same opportunities as he's used to though he's still a player who has averaged 41 assists over the past five seasons - certainly someone who can add to the overall offensive group.

Rielly's future may depend on whether or not Hiller can make Rielly a specialist instead of just a top-four piece

Though this does all depend on whether or not Hiller wants to implement Rielly in that specific role though there are benefits. Rielly getting to play against weaker matchups will give him an edge offensively and he will have much more protection behind him in case he pinches.

Rielly won't need to worry about speeding back if there's Jake McCabe or Chris Tanev behind him, and if there's a chance he plays the wing on the power-play, then he'll have potentially two defenders to protect him as well.

It's about utilizing the best of Rielly's arsenal which is puck movement and outlet passing. Instead of giving him more responsibility on the top pairing, moving him lower and allowing him to pinch and be more aggressive could unlock the Rielly we've seen in years past.

The real question is whether Hiller can reduce Rielly's offensive burden without reducing his usefulness. If Rielly can still move the puck, contribute at five-on-five and help a second power-play unit, Toronto may have a clear role for him even if he is no longer the first option on the blue line.

This may be the last chance to see what Morgan Rielly can offer to the Maple Leafs, and while it's a gamble to give him more leeway, it may be the only thing that brings him success because he's run out of all other options.

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