Ryan O'Reilly
| Ryan O'Reilly | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 O'Reilly with the Colorado Avalanche in November 2014
birth_date = February 7, 1991 | |||
| Born | Clinton, ON, CAN | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||
| Weight | 212 lb (96 kg; 15 st 2 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team Former teams |
Buffalo Sabres Metallurg Magnitogorsk | ||
| National team |
 Canada | ||
| NHL draft |
33rd overall, 2009 Colorado Avalanche | ||
| Playing career | 2009–present | ||
| Website | RyanOReilly.ca | ||
Ryan O'Reilly (born February 7, 1991) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Playing career
Junior
O'Reilly grew up playing hockey near his hometown of Varna, Ontario, with the Seaforth Stars of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association. He then moved up to the AAA level, playing for the Huron-Perth Lakers of the Minor Hockey Alliance starting in Minor Atom in 2000–01. Touted as one of the most talented prospects to come out from the Lakers, O'Reilly then played one year of minor midget hockey with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens in 2006–07 after playing six years of Lakers hockey.[1]
O'Reilly started playing Junior for the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) after he was the recipient of the Jack Ferguson Award as the first overall selection in the 2007 OHL draft.[2] In his rookie season in 2007–08, O'Reilly put up a solid 52 points in 61 games and was named the Otters Rookie of the Year and Most Sportsmanlike Player while also earning Erie's nomination for the Bobby Smith Trophy.[3] In the following year, Ryan backed up his rookie year with 50 assists and 66 points in 68 games for the 2008–09 season, and his allround game was noticed when he was named the Western Conference best Penalty Killer.[4]
Professional
O'Reilly was drafted in the second round, 33rd overall, in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft by the Colorado Avalanche.[5] O'Reilly became the youngest player in Avalanche history to appear in a regular season game when he surprisingly made the opening night roster for the 2009–10 season.[6] He earned his first NHL point in his Avalanche debut on October 1, 2009, against the San Jose Sharks, becoming the first non-first round draft pick to immediately make the NHL in his post-draft year since Patrice Bergeron in 2003–04.[7] He scored his first NHL goal, a game winner, on October 15, 2009, against Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens.[8] On October 19, 2009, following his strong play, the Avalanche announced that O'Reilly and his fellow 2009 draftee Matt Duchene would spend the entire season with the Avalanche.[9] Initially leading all rookie forwards in scoring through October, O'Reilly recorded an assist in a 3–1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on October 24 to cap a seven-game point streak, which stood as the longest by a rookie throughout the season.[10]
Suffering an offensive plateau midway through the season, O'Reilly anchored his position as a top defensive forward and penalty killer. He led the Avalanche in ice time on the penalty kill, culminating in posting two short-handed goals during a double minor penalty against the Columbus Blue Jackets on February 2, 2010, to become the first Avalanche player in history to achieve two shorthanded goals in one game.[11] He finished his rookie season with the Avalanche with 26 points (eight goals and 18 assists) in 81 regular season games before making his post-season debut in a 2–1 victory over the San Jose Sharks in Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarter-finals on April 14, 2010. On April 18, he scored his first career playoff goal, posting the game winning tally in Colorado's Game 3 1–0 overtime victory over San Jose. He was credited with the goal after inadvertently deflecting Sharks defenceman Dan Boyle's pass attempt from an improbable angle into the net past Evgeni Nabokov to put the Avalanche ahead in the series 2–1.[12]
In his second professional season in 2010–11, O'Reilly remained entrenched on the shut-down third line for the Avalanche. On November 19, 2010, he appeared in his 100th NHL game against the New York Rangers, a 5–1 victory.[13] In scoring eight goals in his last 18 games, O'Reilly was able to match his rookie season contribution of 26 points and led the team for a second consecutive season in takeaways with 72.
In the following 2011–12 campaign, having established himself as the leading defensive center on the Avalanche, O'Reilly developed his two-way game and increased his offensive production playing alongside linemate Gabriel Landeskog. This was recognized as he was named as the NHL's second star of the week for November 28 to December 4, after contributing with seven points in four games and was leading all Avalanche forwards in ice time.[14] On January 12, 2012, he appeared in his 200th career NHL game, scoring a goal in a 3–2 overtime defeat to the Nashville Predators.[15] Despite the Avalanche missing the playoffs for a second consecutive season, O'Reilly lead the NHL and set an Avalanche record with 101 takeaways. He also more than doubled his points output for his previous two seasons combined to finish as top scorer on the Avalanche with 18 goals and 55 points.[16]
As a restricted free agent in the off-season, O'Reilly's protracted contract negotiations with the Avalanche were halted by the expired CBA agreement between the NHL and the NHLPA, which incurred the 2012–13 NHL lockout.[17] With the lockout cancelling the start of the season, O'Reilly, in joining his brother Cal, signed a two-year contract with Russian Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) club Metallurg Magnitogorsk on December 7, 2012.[18] Unlike the exodus of NHL players joining European leagues on short-term contracts, O'Reilly signed a two-year contract with the conditional opt-out clause in returning to the NHL if an agreement with the Avalanche was met. O'Reilly made his debut for Magnitogorsk in a 5–3 victory over Atlant Moscow Oblast on December 19.[19]
Despite an end to NHL lockout announced on January 12, 2013, O'Reilly was still unable to come to terms with the Avalanche and initially continued to play in Russia to miss the opening of the shortened 2012–13 NHL season. On January 24, 2013, citing an ankle injury suffered through his 12 games with Metallurg, he mutually terminated his contract in Russia and returned for rehabilitation to North America.[20] At an impasse with the Avalanche a month into the season, O'Reilly was training with junior OHL team, the London Knights, when he ended his holdout on February 28, 2013, by signing a two-year offer sheet with the Calgary Flames worth $10 million.[21] With a game coinciding between the two clubs on that day, the Avalanche announced during the contest that they opted to forgo compensation and secured O'Reilly to a contract by matching the Flames' offer sheet.[22]
In the 2013–14 season, under new head coach Patrick Roy, O'Reilly was moved to the Wing to play alongside Matt Duchene and responded with a team-leading and career high 28 goals and 64 points in 80 games as the Avalanche returned to the playoffs. For the second time in his career, O'Reilly led the NHL in takeaways with 83 and in recording just one penalty minor he was selected as the recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy.[23]
As an impending restricted free agent, and with past difficulties in contract negotiation, the Avalanche elected to take O'Reilly to a salary arbitration.[24] On July 23, 2014, O'Reilly and the Avalanche agreed to settle prior to the arbitrary hearing on a two-year contract, to approach free agency, worth $12 million.[25]
International play
 O’Reilly with Team Canada in 2012 | ||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's ice hockey | ||
| Representing Canada
| ||
| World Championships | ||
 |
2015 Czech Republic | |
O'Reilly made his international debut at the 2008 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, scoring six points in six games as captain of gold winning Team Ontario. As an underage 17-year-old, O'Reilly gained selection to Team Canada the 2008 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Slovakia.[26] He scored five points in four games as and was named game MVP in the final against Russia, as he helped Canada capture the gold medal for the fourth time in five years.[27]
The following year, O'Reilly was selected as captain of Team Canada for the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championships.[28] In six games, he contributed with five points before finishing in fourth place after losing 5–4 in the bronze medal game against Finland.[29]
Unable to reach the playoffs with the Avalanche in the 2014–15 season, O'Reilly for the third time, was invited to participate in the 2015 World Championships in the Czech Republic. O'Reilly helped contribute to a dominate team Canada, scoring 10 points in 10 games as the Canadians took the Gold Medal, their first since 2007.[30]
Personal
O'Reilly is the younger brother of fellow professional hockey player Cal O'Reilly, who has played in the NHL with the Nashville Predators, Phoenix Coyotes, and Pittsburgh Penguins Ryan OReilly is now playing for Buffalo Sabres and is going to turn the Sabres into Stanley Cup Finals contenders.[31]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2005–06 | Huron-Perth Lakers | MHAO | 51 | 31 | 40 | 71 | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Toronto Jr. Canadiens | GTHL | 50 | 31 | 43 | 74 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Toronto Jr. Canadiens | OPJHL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2007–08 | Erie Otters | OHL | 61 | 19 | 33 | 52 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Erie Otters | OHL | 68 | 16 | 50 | 66 | 26 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 2009–10 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 81 | 8 | 18 | 26 | 18 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2010–11 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 74 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 81 | 18 | 37 | 55 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | KHL | 12 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 29 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 80 | 28 | 36 | 64 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2014–15 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 82 | 17 | 38 | 55 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 427 | 90 | 156 | 246 | 64 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 2 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Canada | WHC17 | 
|
6 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2008 | Canada | IH18 |
|
4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2009 | Canada | WJC18 | 4th | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2012 | Canada | WC | 5th | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | |
| 2013 | Canada | WC | 5th | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2015 | Canada | WC |
|
10 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 16 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 0 | ||||
| Senior totals | 25 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 4 | ||||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| CHL | ||
| Top Prospects Game | 2009 | |
| NHL | ||
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy | 2014 | [23] |
References
- ^ "Above and beyond". TheScoutingNews.com. 2006-12-02. Retrieved 2010-07-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Otters to select Ryan O'Reilly". oursportscentral.com. 2007-05-04. Retrieved 2010-07-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "OHL announces scholastic award winners". Ontario Hockey League. 2008-04-28. Retrieved 2010-07-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) [dead link] - ^ "O'Reilly fostering attention in this years NHL draft". NHL. 2009-06-10. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Lakers Alumnus Ryan O'Reilly Selected 33rd Overall in NHL Entry Draft". Huron-PerthLakers.ca. 2009-06-28. Retrieved 2010-07-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Duchene, O'Reilly rely on friendship during rookie rigors". NHL. 2009-10-07. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Wolski makes sure Avalanche win on night Sakic has number retired". CBS Sports. 2009-10-01. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "O'Reilly surprises Avs, himself with strong play". NHL. 2009-10-16. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Dater, Adrian (2009-10-17). "Avs rookie Matt Duchene scores career first goal to help beat Detroit". Denver Post. Retrieved 2009-10-18.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Ryan O'Reilly Rookie Rewind". Colorado Avalanche. 2010-04-30. Retrieved 2010-09-13.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Yip, O'Reilly score two each in Avs 5-1 win". Yahoo! Sports. 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Dater, Adrian (2010-04-18). "Avalanche wins on Sharks' blind side, take 2-1 series lead". Denver Post. Retrieved 2010-09-13.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Anderson returns in net as Avalanche crush Rangers". CBS Sports. 2010-11-19. Retrieved 2011-02-03.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Moulson, O'Reilly, Quick named as 'Three Stars'". National Hockey League. 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2012-12-05.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Predators rally, finish off Avs in OT". CBS Sports. 2012-01-12. Retrieved 2013-01-02.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "O'Reilly leading Avs Offensively and Defensively". Colorado Avalanche. 2012-03-17. Retrieved 2012-03-18.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Adrian Dater (2012-09-25). "Avalanche to wait on new CBA to resumer talks with Ryan O'Reilly". Denver Post. Retrieved 2012-09-25.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Ryan O'Reilly signs 2-year deal with KHL". CBS Sports. 2012-12-07. Retrieved 2013-01-02.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Metallurg Mg 5 - Atlant 3". Kontinental Hockey League. 2012-12-19. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Ryan O'Reilly, Metallurg terminate his KHL contract; deal with Avalanche 'not close'". Yahoo! Sports. 2013-01-24. Retrieved 2013-01-24.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Flames sign Ryan O'Reilly to offer sheet". CBS Sports. 2013-02-28. Retrieved 2013-02-28.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Colorado Avalanche beats Calgary Flames on and off the ice by securing O'Reilly". Denver Post. 2013-02-28. Retrieved 2013-02-28.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b "Avalanche's O'Reilly wins Lady Byng". National Hockey League. 2014-06-24. Retrieved 2014-06-24.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Avalanche file club-elected Salary Arbitration for Ryan O'Reilly". CBS Sports. 2014-06-15. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Peters, Chris (July 23, 2014). "Ryan O'Reilly, Avalanche settle on two-year, $12 million contract". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 23, 2014.
- ^ "17-year-old Ryan O'Reilly hits the ice in Slovakia during tournament with Hockey Canada's U18 team". The Huron Expositor. 2008-06-07. Retrieved 2010-01-04.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Varna's Ryan O'Reilly brings home the Gold". Clinton News-Record. 2008-06-05. Retrieved 2009-10-02.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Ryan O'Reilly named captain of Canada's national men's under 18 team". Hockey Canada. 2009-04-08. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "USA edges Canada 2-1 in World Championships semi-final". Hockey Canada. 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2010-07-07.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Canada down Russia for gold medal at IIHF World Championships". CBS Sports. 2015-05-17. Retrieved 2015-05-17.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Brothers Cal and Ryan O'Reilly get set for NHL season in Nashville, Denver". Seaforth Huron Expositor. 2009-09-20. Retrieved 2009-11-06.