It looks like there's a new power couple in the world of Canadian sports—and we have Auston Matthews to thank for the scoop.
The 22-year-old Toronto Maple Leaf recently revealed that teammate Morgan Rielly, 26, and retired Olympic figure skater Tessa Virtue, 30, are… knocking skates, so to speak.
During a candid chat with Barstool Sports’ Spittin’ Chicklets podcast on Feb. 27, a somewhat disgruntled Matthews (more on that in a second) merely confirmed what many Leafs fans have already suspected for months—remember: Rielly and Virtue first turned heads when they made a cozy public appearance together at the Blue and White Leafs Gala back in January.
Aside from the annual charity event, eagle-eyed fans also noted Virtue’s penchant for leaving heart eyes emoji on some of Rielly’s Instagram posts—like this one featuring the defenceman in a sleek suit.
As expected, Canadians took to Twitter to voice their joy—or in some cases, jealousy—over the news. Sure, Rielly and Virtue haven’t technically confirmed their coupledom, but it’s not every day that we hear about two major Canuck athletes sweeping each other off their skates, so forgive us for getting a little worked up.
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Then there’s Auston Matthews. The record-setting Leaf (rather amusingly) came off as a little salty about the blossoming romance between his bestie and the figure skating star during the podcast.
“I was really pissed because me and [Rielly] would go to the Raps game every year when Russell Westbrook would come, so we’d always sit courtside,” Matthews said. “This year, he didn’t go with me because his girlfriend was in town and that’s where it really fell off for me.”
Yes, Matthews came off as a little disgruntled, but his general unhappiness—whether joking or not—is 100 per cent relatable to anyone who has ever suddenly found themselves stuck in the awkward position of third wheel. “I was pretty upset with him for a while and I would chirp him and stuff like that because he kind of kept it quiet,” Matthews added.
In the end, however, Virtue was able to win the Buds’ alternate captain over. “I met her and she’s an absolute sweetheart,” Matthews admitted. “So I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt now, she’s cool.’”
Props to our boy Morgan—a living testament to the power of shooting your shot.
