Maple Leafs lose another D-man as Rielly suffers injury vs. Islanders
Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly suffered an undisclosed injury during the third period of Monday's 3-2 overtime loss to the New York Islanders and did not return.
Rielly collided awkwardly with Kyle Palmieri. He played one more shift before heading to the dressing room.
Rielly and Palmieri collide
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) November 22, 2022
both look okay pic.twitter.com/YhcGi0x23V
Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said postgame that Rielly will undergo imaging Tuesday to determine the extent of the injury.
If Rielly were to miss any time, the Leafs would be forced to play without their top three defensemen. T.J. Brodie will miss another week with an oblique injury, and Jake Muzzin is out until at least February with a cervical spine ailment.
That would leave their blue line looking something like this:
| LD | RD |
|---|---|
| Mark Giordano | Justin Holl |
| Rasmus Sandin | Timothy Liljegren |
| Jordie Benn | Victor Mete |
But Keefe thinks the Leafs will just have to embrace the next-man-up mentality if Rielly is forced to miss time.
"We lose Muzzin, (the media) made a big deal out of it. It wasn't a big deal. Brodie, (the media) made a big deal of it. It wasn't a big deal," Keefe said, according to The Athletic's Jonas Siegel. "We just gotta keep playing. That’s the way it goes."