NASHVILLE — Make no mistake, the Toronto Maple Leafs wish Ryan O’Reilly was suiting up in the visitors’ room Saturday instead of the Bridgestone Arena home room.
Knowing the value of middle-ice depth, Leafs GM Brad Treliving tried convincing free agent O’Reilly to re-sign with the club that rented the Ontario native at the 2023 trade deadline.
Instead, the 2019 Conn Smythe and Selke winner signed a four-year, $18-million contract with the Nashville Predators, a team in reset mode.
A team located in a warm, tax-free state and a family-friendly town.
A team where the visiting media can outnumber the local scribes four-to-one at a morning skate.
And the same team that drafted Ryan’s older brother, Cal, who raved about his time in Music City.
“Definitely a tough decision. You know, there are so many things that came into my decision. I think it’s a very good team over there and with the relationships I had, it was tough to leave [the Leafs]. But on the other end, I couldn’t be happier with where I am. I love this team. I think we’re gonna do something special,” O’Reilly said Saturday morning, after a night spent catching up with former mates John Tavares, Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly.
No doubt, the humble, soft-spoken O’Reilly can operate in the NHL’s shadows here.
But avoiding the spotlight of the mecca, he says, didn’t play as much of a factor into his decision as outsiders thought.
“I think it got blown out of proportion a bit,” O’Reilly said.
Yet, as a father of young children, O’Reilly does appreciate the ability to take his kids to local rinks without the attention suddenly shifting his way, even if a few Nashvillians do recognize him.
“You do kind of fly under the radar,” O’Rielly said. “At this point in my career, I think I enjoy that, to be able to spend more time with my kids, more family time.”
He weighed the pros and cons before flying south, and is quick to point out that the Maple Leafs’ passionate fan base and attentive media is part of what makes playing hockey in Toronto unique.
For a boy to grow up and play for Dad’s favourite team? That’s something you can’t take away.
“It’s just something so amazing to experience, and still disappointing we didn’t have a deeper run and get closer. But still just to be part of the team was something special and something I’ll cherish,” O’Reilly said, hours before facing off against the same guys he battled and bonded with through two emotional series.
“It’s definitely weird. There’s still friends over there and a lot of good relationships.”
O’Reilly has been a fast fit with Nashville’s leadership group, already pacing its forwards by skating 20:06 per night, contributing to both special teams, and posting a respectable four points.
“He’s been a coach’s dream,” Predators coach Andrew Brunette said. “He does every little thing right. And probably the biggest factor is how he does his day-to-day business. And for our young players to see that is this worth all the price.
“For me, it’s a real luxury to have a voice in the room and a former captain. So, he brings it all.”
Which is precisely why the Maple Leafs tried to retain him.
When the O’Reilly negotiations failed, Treliving’s backup plan entailed re-signing his other impending UFA centre, David Kämpf, to a four-year, $9.6-million extension.
In an ideal world, the defensive-minded Kämpf (no goals, one assist) would slot in as a 4C on a contending roster.
But with the William Nylander 3C experiment abandoned and prospect Fraser Minten smartly returned to junior, Kämpf is in the three hole and recalled Pontus Holmberg is centring the fourth line.
Which is fine, for now.
But there is no question that the depth of Toronto’s centre ice suffered a blow when O’Reilly opted to leave.
“He’s a confident guy, which he’s earned over his time in the league. And he helped us get better as a team,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.
“In terms of his decision that he made, again, he’s earned that. He’s earned an opportunity to be a free agent and to be a guy that’s in demand and to make his own decisions [based] on what’s important to him.
“There’s lessons that all of our guys can take through their time spent with him.”
