“What if I help bring a Stanley Cup to Toronto?” so the text of the 32-year-old striker. “Can you imagine?”
“I wrote back and said, ‘That’s the right attitude,’” Brian said. “I mean, like Ryan said, can you imagine that?”
For Brian and his wife Bonnie, Ryan’s mother, the concept is almost surreal, much like it is for their son.
Both of O’Reilly’s parents grew up in the Toronto area, Bonnie in the East End and Brian in the West End suburb of Etobicoke. Before the team moved to Scotiabank Arena in 1999, Bonnie spent time working at a concession stand in the corridor behind the green seating area in Maple Leaf Gardens, the arena’s third level, during Maple Leafs games.
As natives of Southern Ontario, Ryan and his parents know all too well what it means to play for the Maple Leafs. About a passionate fanbase who haven’t seen the franchise win a Stanley Cup since 1967, let alone a Stanley Cup Playoff series since 2004.
And most importantly, about the unmatched expectations of a team in a ubiquitous fishbowl that already boasts elite talent like forwards Mitchell Marner, Auston Matthews, John Tavares and William Nylander, and defender Morgan Rielly.
Even after helping the St. Louis Blues win the Stanley Cup in 2019 when he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, O’Reilly admitted he thought about how cool it would be to one day be the blue – wear white Maple Leafs jersey. He just never allowed himself to believe that it would become a reality.
Until the time came.
“Absolutely,” he said. “My parents grew up in Toronto. My wife (Dayna) is from here. I have many connections here. I always thought about it but never really thought it would actually happen.
“Just kind of shocked I’m playing here.”
Others are not, including Dallas Stars coach Peter DeBoer.
DeBoer is a friend of the O’Reilly family and has a summer residence in the Lake Huron community of Bayfield, Ontario, where Bonnie and Brian now reside. Brian has been a high-performance life coach for more than four decades and once worked with DeBoer’s children at one of Brian’s so-called “boot camps” in nearby Goderich.
Despite the Stars coming off a disappointing 4-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, DeBoer took a minute on Sunday to discuss the impact of the trade to Toronto on Ryan and his family.
“I think some kids are growing up in Ontario and they’re supposed to play for the Leafs,” DeBoer said. “I think Ryan is one of those guys.
“When you’re close to his family and see the impact they’re having on daily life, whether it’s raising money to care for young people or raising awareness of mental health in small town Ontario, the entire should be Province cheer for this guy.”
Sometimes it seemed that way on Saturday night when O’Reilly made his debut in Toronto.
Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe helped by putting O’Reilly on the starting lineup. As the roster was read out loud in the Toronto dressing room, cheers erupted from the players. The same happened when they were read out by the loudspeaker announcer in the arena.
Keefe said he understood what he calls “the moment” which would mean for O’Reilly. It was his first game with the Maple Leafs. On Saturday night. One nation watched Hockey Night in Canada. And the fact that it was up against the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto’s most famous rivals, was the icing on the cake.
“That was pretty crazy,” O’Reilly said. “I’m just glad I won the draw. I had a lot of families here so it was special for them too.”
Just as it was for O’Reilly’s sons, Jameson, 4; and Declan, 2. Brian shared a video of the boys cheering when they saw their dad on TV in a Maple Leafs jersey, accompanied by the tweet, “This is the best picture video ever. His kids are so excited to see their dad play the Toronto Maple Leafs!”
So were Brian and Bonnie. And when Ryan picked up his first point with the Maple Leafs, an assist for a Michael Bunting goal in the second period of the 5-1 win, Bonnie, seated in Section 112 of the Scotiabank Arena, squealed with delight, much to Brian’s annoyance hearing.
“He might be deaf for a while,” she said with a chuckle. “But I hope to do it more often. That means Ryan is doing really well.”
* * * * *
Graham Nesbitt is full of emotions.
In a phone interview Sunday, he discussed the excitement the O’Reillys, his longtime family friends, had over Ryan’s trade with the Maple Leafs. He is talkative, insightful, full of zeal.
Then the topic of how Bonnie helped save his life comes up. And all of that is changing.
“I can’t find the words,” he says, trying to express himself. “I mean, such a sacrifice…”
He stops there, and that’s understandable. No more words needed.
Nesbitt was the longtime manager of the Seaforth & District Community Center in Seaforth, a town of 3,000 people about 116 miles west of Toronto, where Ryan, who is from nearby Clinton, grew up. He often went out of his way to let Ryan and his older brother Cal, who had 49 points (16 goals, 33 assists) in 145 NHL games with the Nashville Predators, Phoenix Coyotes, Pittsburgh Penguins and other Buffalo Sabers, on snow days or to the rink after hours to give the kids extra time on the ice.
Years later, Bonnie repaid Nesbitt’s generosity for helping her boys on their path to professional hockey by donating one of her kidneys to him.
In 2011, Nesbitt was diagnosed with IgA nephropathy, also known as Berger’s disease. Patients with this disease build up an antibody in the kidneys that over time can limit their ability to filter blood. Medications helped control Nesbitt’s condition until 2019, when it became clear he would need a kidney transplant.
Enter Bonnie.
On March 3, 2021, the transplant surgery was performed in London, Ontario, with the Blues subsequently sharing a photo on social media of Nesbitt and Bonnie giving thumbs-up from neighboring hospital beds.
“What can you say? What is there to say?” said the 67-year-old. “She saved my life.”
Nesbitt had previously reached out to the O’Reillys and asked if Cal and Ryan could use their social media platforms to find a donor. When Bonnie found out she was a match, the case was closed.
“I will always be grateful for what he did for my boys on their journey to pro hockey,” said Bonnie. “That was the least I could do.”
On Friday night, Nesbitt received a text message from his son, Derek. The news: Ryan and teammate Noel Acciari had been traded from the Blues to Toronto as part of a three-team deal that also included the Minnesota Wild.
“When I received the kidney from Bonnie, Brian warned my wife, Pam, and I that if I started jumping up and down during hockey games, it’s Bonnie because she runs around and screams during hockey games,” he said. “So when I saw Ryan going to Toronto, I was like, ‘This is going to be crazy. I know they’re both going crazy.’”
In a way, all of Seaforth made the same Saturday.
“I bet everyone in town watched this game and celebrated Ryan being a Leaf,” Nesbitt said. “I mean, when Ryan brought the Stanley Cup here in 2019, there were blues t-shirts with his name on them everywhere. Count on these being replaced with Leafs kits everywhere.
“I bet there will be Toronto O’Reilly No. 90 jerseys at the local store by the end of the week and going fast.”
Both Nesbitt and DeBoer speak of the family’s humility, as evidenced by the family’s census that their home was home to 47 foster children from Southern Ontario over a 20-year period. The stays can be short or last up to four years.
“I think it taught the boys humility,” Bonnie said. “It showed them that they value what they have and that not everyone is so lucky.”
Traits found in Bonnie and Brian, DeBoer said.
“Special family.”
* * * * *
O’Reilly grew up more of a Wayne Gretzky fan than a Toronto Maple Leafs fan, his parents said.
And when he first wore a Toronto jersey, it was a rather unforgettable experience.
“I took him to the rink when he was only two years old,” Brian recalled. “I hadn’t really dressed him fully. He was wearing a Toronto jersey, one of those bucket helmets… and he was wearing a diaper.”
The local newspaper thought the picture of young Ryan was cute and published a photo of him the next day that looked like it. When Bonnie saw the published image, she snapped.
“I gave Brian so much [grief],” she now says with a laugh. “I was relentless on him. I kept saying to him, ‘How could you let him out like that without being fully dressed?’”
Ryan is of course an adult now. And now it’s his turn to help children.
On Friday, hours before the deal closed, 5-year-old Hank Walker got his wish to play hockey with O’Reilly.
The young fan made the 2020 wish through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. As a baby, he was diagnosed with posterior urethral valves, obstructive membranes in the bladder. The condition required a kidney transplant.
Hank started his day by signing a one-day deal with the Blues while St. Louis general manager Doug Armstrong and O’Reilly looked on. He then skated with the likes of O’Reilly and blues forward Brayden Schenn, and even had a chance to practice his celebration skills.
Hours later, Bonnie did the same when Ryan told her he was a Leaf.
“It was crazy, chaos,” she said.
It would have been a short flight from St. Louis to Chicago to meet the Maple Leafs for their game against the Blackhawks on Sunday. Instead, Keefe said both players were “adamant” that they wanted to come to Toronto and play the Canadiens on Saturday.
There was only one problem. Both players did not have their gear, which was at the Blues facility when the trade was made official.
“O’Reilly may have figured out a way to get the building keys to get his gear,” Keefe said, grinning widely. “And he grabbed Acciaris while he was there. That just speaks to what these guys are about.
“There are the things on the ice that everyone will see. I got a glimpse of what they will bring to our space.”
After Sunday’s game in Chicago, the Maple Leafs continue their road trip Tuesday with the Sabers.
O’Reilly played for the Sabers from 2015 to 2018, recording 176 points (65 goals, 111 assists) in 224 games. After Buffalo finished 31st in 2017-18, he said he lost his love for hockey, adding that the franchise had adopted “the mindset of losing.”
He was then traded to the Blues in a multiplayer deal that landed Buffalo forward Tage Thompson, who finished third in the NHL with 36 goals on Sunday. Indeed, there will be no shortage of storylines for this game in Buffalo, which will see O’Reilly once again become part of the Golden Horseshoe Rivalry, this time for the despised Maple Leafs.
Exactly who does he want to be with, according to TSN analyst Carlo Colaiacovo. The former defenseman for both the Maple Leafs and the Blues tweeted this weekend that the decision was made ahead of time by O’Reilly and his family that Toronto would be his preferred destination.
“And can you imagine if he could actually win the trophy with Toronto,” said an excited Bonnie.
Well, can you?
Don’t miss interesting posts on Famousbio
