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Toronto Maple Leafs: 5 Players Who Need to Step Up in Round One

By David Morassutti

Apr 4, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (34) checks Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson (43) at the Air Canada Centre. Washington defeated Toronto 4-1. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 4, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (34) checks Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson (43) at the Air Canada Centre. Washington defeated Toronto 4-1. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Toronto Maple Leafs
Feb 11, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly (44) skates with the puck during a 3-1 loss to Buffalo Sabres at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /

3) Morgan Rielly

For Rielly this will be his first time in the NHL playoffs, but not his first time playing on a bigger stage. He has appeared for Canada twice at the IIHF World Championship, playing in 18 games registering six points.

Rielly has also played for Team North America at the World Cup of Hockey. As such, he has experience in a best-on-best tournament.

Rielly has had to battle back from an injury earlier in the season, when he missed six games. When he was not available, the team was not the same.

Nikita Zaitsev and Roman Polak are banged up heading into the playoffs so it will probably be up to Rielly to take up more responsibility, especially on the powerplay. It will be interesting to see how he plays when the games mean more and with Washington looking to take their game to the next level.

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