Forward Ryan O’Reilly wanted to make it clear: He didn’t leave Toronto because of the pressure that comes with wearing the Maple Leafs’ colors.
That’s what many suggested this summer when the 32-year-old veteran signed a four-year, $18 million deal with the Nashville Predators. In July, Leafs general manager Brad Treliving said, “If you’re from this area, there’s a lot to do.”
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O’Reilly is from Clinton, a community just hours from the Queen City. The Maple Leafs acquired him from the St. Louis Blues in February. With his childhood club, he scored 11 points in 13 regular season games and nine points in 11 playoff games.
“We can say that everything is amplified,” said the hockey player, whose comments were reported by the Sportsnet network. I don’t do this often, but it was good that I didn’t have the TV or radio on often when I played there. There is so much [de médias] who talk about it. Absolutely everything is covered. […] It’s more than just a game.”
Too many attractive things
Regardless, O’Reilly insists that wasn’t the reason that made him end his Toronto experience. Instead, he said there were too many things that lured him to Nashville. The midfielder specifically cited the vision of GM Barry Despite, the presence of head coach Andrew Brunette, the leadership group already in place and the return of his brother Cal to the organization.
“There are so many attractive things here,” O’Reilly said. We have something here that, if we do things right, will make us very competitive.”
“It was definitely a privilege to play for an organization like this,” he added of his time with the Leafs. If it had worked out in the end I would have been happy there, but I just think it was the decision I wanted to make. My family liked it better. We’ll see if I made the right choice. You never know, but I’m enjoying it so far.”