Two teams have been linked to Morgan Rielly

Morgan Rielly's trade rumours haven't subsided despite no deal being anywhere near complete, as now Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are eyeing the Leafs veteran.

For the first few weeks after the NHL season ended, there was a lot of talk about whether or not Morgan Rielly would stay with the Maple Leafs. We heard potential rumours of a San Jose deal but that fell through after they decided on Darnell Nurse instead, and now Rielly looks to be part of the lineup going forward.

He isn't a bad player but he's nowhere where the team needs him to be, and he can't be the #1 defender anymore due to his offensive regression and defensive liabilities, and getting his $7.5-million off the books is going to be imperative for not only saving money now, but in the future.

Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are calling about Rielly but Pagnotta's report isn't concrete

And the Maple Leafs may be in luck too.

There has been a report by David Pagnotta that the interest in Rielly has extended past the Western Conference, as both the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers could want to get their hands on Rielly:

I know the Flyers, I believe Pittsburgh to some degree, have expressed interest...in Morgan Rielly.

Leave it to Kyle Dubas to try and build the Maple Leafs over in Pittsburgh. He just acquired Nick Robertson, and has Connor Dewar on the roster as well, while also previously having Conor Timmins. Adding Rielly would be the fourth Maple Leaf he's added in two years, but if there's anyone who has the inside track on these guys; it's Dubas.

But Pagnotta's report doesn't exactly say that both men are viewing Rielly as a top solution. He thinks Pittsburgh is interested but stopped short of saying they were actively pursuing him, and the Flyers link seems a bit more grounded but still there's nothing concrete that's come out of the rumours - not even a potential package.

Rielly wanted to head out west but a thinning market means he has to expand his options

We all heard that Rielly preferred to leave the Eastern Conference but with a whittled down market, it's best if he at least considers some other options. Pittsburgh would be a great fit because he wouldn't be looked at as a focal point, nor will he be running the PP because Erik Karlsson is there.

Dubas knows what Rielly offers and if there's any team who Rielly would agree to move to in the East, it would likely be one that he has a dose of familiarity with.

Plus, he has old teammates to work off of, and he'd at least be able to have an easier time competing for a playoff spot in the Metropolitan as opposed to the stacked Atlantic.

Philly is interested and could be a good destination given that Rielly doesn't need to worry about running things there either, but with a few contracts to figure out first it may be a bit too expensive for them. But again, much like Pittsburgh he'll at least have some ex-teammates with Joseph Woll, Simon Benoit, and Nikita Grebenkin.

The issue here is that teams are viewing Rielly as a secondary option and paying $7.5-million without a sweetener is a lot of commitment to a guy who may be on the bounce back or continue regressing.

So while the interest is there, it isn't anything that fans should get excited for (especially those Rielly detractors). Prepare for him to be a part of things this season, but don't think Toronto isn't trying to move him either, it's about finding the right place for Rielly.

But he has to do some work himself and open his options up in order to do so.

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