Posted February 18, 2023 • Last updated 8 hours ago • 5 minutes read
9 Comments Forward Ryan O’Reilly (center) makes his Maple Leafs debut against the Montreal Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday night. Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images
Ryan O’Reilly will certainly not forget his first 24 hours as a Maple Leaf.
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He went to bed in St. Louis on Friday, flew to Toronto on Saturday morning, recorded the opening draw in the Leafs-Canadiens game Hockey night in Canadawho almost scored had an assist in the 5-1 win and flew to Chicago with his new pals for Sunday’s game.
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“It was crazy but great to just dive right in,” O’Reilly said. “Winning that big and getting to know the guys to start the process has been great. It was a whirlwind.”
According to coach Sheldon Keefe, O’Reilly was so keen on making a good first impression that he decided not to wait for the Leafs to return to the Central Time Zone and to reach the St. Louis Blues facility by dawn to pick up his gear and to grab those of his colleague Noel Acciari and get to the airport.
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Many Leafs were asleep when the three-team deal closed Friday night, but now they have a good idea of just how much their new all-around center can help their playoff drive.
“Exactly what we wanted from him,” said winger Michael Bunting, who scored twice on Saturday. “Great two-way play that plays with offense and his racquet is so active. He made a great game for us after a long day of travel (16:12 ice time with some power play and penalty).
A native of Clinton, Ontario, O’Reilly entered his new abode at Scotiabank Arena, where his No. 90 was already prominently displayed in the team gift shop. The former Blues captain won his first tie, lining up with his 2009 classmate John Tavares, who switched to left wing, and Mitch Marner, who nearly converted from a close goal, on right wing and bet the loud applause of his introduction.
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“I’m still kind of shocked. I’m sure it will settle down in the next few days,” O’Reilly said
But the 32-year-old 2019 Stanley Cup champion understands he was brought here to be a big chunk in the playoffs — and not just to help Toronto make the first round.
“You can tell what guys are like just by the energy in the room and between periods. It’s fun to be part of this (winning) mentality. There is still a lot of work to be done, but it is rejuvenating to be around this energy.”
Keefe wanted to make it easy for O’Reilly and Acciari to stoop to clickable lines, with the latter taking center stage on Zach-Aston Reese and Alex Kerfoot and earning his own applause.
“Two experienced players who can pass straight away,” Keefe said. “I know at some point I would have tried to put Tavares on the wing with O’Reilly, so we gave him some runway.
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“The two new guys (middle) are her natural position and in O’Reilly’s case in particular, we wanted two of our best guys. In my day, we talked to John about playing on the wing, but we didn’t have the depth in the middle to look at it closely.”
Acciari, who has a long rivalry with the Leafs stretching back to the final playoff series against Boston, joked he’s tired of chasing fast Leafs like Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander all these years.
“It was exciting to come here, to meet everyone,” said the Rhode Island native. “Ryan and I didn’t want to waste time coming here.
“Playing on this rink is always loud and it’s nice when they cheer me on.”
After turbulent moments early in the second half when the Canadians, who always do their best against the Leafs, opened the scoring and carried the game, the Leafs caught fire.
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O’Reilly provided an assist on a Bunting goal, Pierre Engvall also had a goal in the middle half, while Matthews had two painterly assists, including Nylander’s in the third. David Kampf added another goal.
Joseph Woll made 29 saves, with Ilya Samsonov heading to Chicago but unsure his unknown illness will be any better by afternoon’s game time. Erik Kallgren also relies on network insurance.
Leafs nemesis Josh Anderson tipped over with a shot from Mike Matheson for his 13th career goal against Toronto to open the second period.
The papers were dizzy in the morning as full details of the trade emerged.
“That’s a pretty good wake up (message),” Tavares said. “It’s really exciting for our team, our group and undoubtedly our fanbase. When (Kyle Dubas) and management take such a step, it sends a strong message of faith to the team and what we are trying to achieve.”
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Before the game, general manager Dubas said putting Matt Murray on long-term injured reserve is not a setback for the fall’s likely No. 1 goaltender and he expects to have it activated by the March 1 game in Edmonton. Mowing Murray’s salary at LTIR helped bring the newcomers under the cap.
Keefe greatly appreciated O’Reilly’s 2019 playoff MVP nomination.
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Woll, who can’t be outdone, shines for the Maple Leafs to record their first home win in the NHL
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“You’re trying to win the Stanley Cup,” Dubas says after the Maple Leafs trade for O’Reilly, Acciari
“He’s one of the few guys with a higher point percentage in the playoffs than in the regular season. He’s done more than enough in his time in the playoffs.
“You look at the mid-ice depth in our division, and for each team, the foundation is in the mid-ice. We already have versatile guys in our lineup so we can try different things and now (at seven weeks into the NHL regular schedule) have plenty of time to try different things and still some time until the deadline (March 3) to get to know the players, how they fit in and how that affects the rest of the group.”
The win also marked Keefe’s 150th in the NHL, third fastest in 241 games. NHL stats recorded only two other coaches to reach 150 faster, Mike Keenan in 234 games with the Flyers and Bruce Boudreau in 238 with the Capitals.
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