Ryan O'Reilly discusses his decision to leave Toronto for the opportunity he was presented with in Nashville
Ryan O'Reilly fit seamlessly into the Leafs' lineup when he and Noel Acciari were acquired in late February of last season. Although he missed a month due to a broken finger, O'Reilly's presence was certainly felt. He not only gave the Leafs some of the best center depth in the league, but his arrival also allowed the Leafs to experiment with John Tavares on the wing at times, with O'Reilly slotting between him and Mitch Marner. That line was a force during the regular season, including accounting for 9 points in the first 12 minutes of a game against Buffalo.
Unfortunately, Sheldon Keefe rarely used that line in the playoffs and preferred to have three star centers instead of stacking his top-six. Following a disappointing second round exit, Leaf fans were hopeful that O'Reilly would re-sign with the Leafs after getting a taste of playing in Toronto, but the 32-year-old instead chose a four-year, $18 million contract with the Nashville Predators, leaving the limelight behind in favour of a quieter market.
O'Reilly recently sat down with Sportsnet's Adam Vingan and revealed that it was a much tougher decision for him to leave than people seem to realize. While he revealed that the media noise wasn't the primary reason for his departure, it didn't seem to help either.
"It was and is an amazing place to play. Just putting on that jersey, you can just feel the love that comes with it, how much pride people take in that jersey. It's hockey's team. It was definitely not an easy decision not (to re-sign) there.
You could tell everything's amplified. I don't do it often, (but) it was a good thing when I played there that I didn't turn on the TV much or turn on the radio, because there are (so many outlets) talking about it. Everything's covering it, talking about it. Here, it gets a little time on the TV, but it's not everything. It is more than just a game there."
You could tell everything's amplified. I don't do it often, (but) it was a good thing when I played there that I didn't turn on the TV much or turn on the radio, because there are (so many outlets) talking about it. Everything's covering it, talking about it. Here, it gets a little time on the TV, but it's not everything. It is more than just a game there."
Now a member of the Nashville Predators, O'Reilly believes that he and the Preds are in a position to challenge for a playoff spot this season, despite the significant transformation that the team had undergone this summer.
"There were just so many things that were attractive to here. We have something here that, if we do things the right way, we're going to be very competitive."
I know his decision wasn't a popular one among Leaf fans, who really wanted him to come back this season, but in the end, what's done is done and the moves that the Leafs made this summer were still pretty exciting, especially with regard to Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi - at least one of which they may have been unable to pursue had O'Reilly re-signed with the Buds.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 27 | 458 ANSWERS Ryan O'Reilly discusses his decision to leave Toronto for the opportunity he was presented with in Nashville Are you upset with the fact that Ryan O'Reilly didn't re-sign with the Leafs this summer? | ||
| No - don't want to be here? Good riddance | 189 | 41.3 % |
| Yes, I really liked ROR in a Leafs jersey | 180 | 39.3 % |
| I'm indifferent on the situation | 89 | 19.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
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