Morgan Rielly will be the Toronto Maple Leafs lone North American representative from the blueline in a tournament as big as the Olympics – something he may not have had for quite some time had the World Cup not been set up.
If the North American team lines up left shot-right shot pairings like is anticipated then Rielly will get a chance to play with either Aaron Ekblad, Seth Jones, Jacob Trouba or Colton Parayko – with Jones or Ekblad being the likely partner for the Leafs young star.
Playing alongside Jones or Ekblad is going to give the older Rielly a chance to futher his development from defensive superstars near his age and allow him to shoulder the responsibilities that come from playing in a high talent tournament in a team’s top four defensive group.