According to TSN hockey insider Pierre LeBrun, Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving has reached out to Ryan O’Reilly’s camp with interest in re-signing him.
LeBrun also points out that O’Reilly would like to return to the Toronto Maple Leafs but is keeping all his free-agent options open.
On the open market, O’Reilly is one of the top centerman available. There will be teams willing to pay him more than the Leafs can. It will all come down to which team O’Reilly feels is the right fit for him.
O’Reilly is 32, so he can easily command a new deal in the 4–5-year range. Does he think he can help the Leafs win a championship before he retires? Can they convince O’Reilly to return for a smaller cap hit than market value by offering him his desired term length? We’ll learn the answers to these questions once free agency begins on July 1st.
With his age and his dip in production last season, O’Reilly making the $7.5 million he did over the past seven seasons is not likely. However, I don’t think he’ll be willing to drop too low below that number. His minimum market value will probably start around $5 million. According to capfriendly.com, the Toronto Maple Leafs have $9.1 million in cap space. Moves will need to be made if they plan on Re-signing O’Reilly and Samsonov, plus fill out the rest of the roster.
Toronto Maple Leafs Need O’Reilly for Center Depth
I would love to see O’Reilly back in Toronto for the next few years, but only at the right price.
If the Leafs can sign the 32-year-old for four years, that will bring him to 36. By NHL standards, he’ll be at or close to retirement by then.
Bringing him back for under $5 million a season will be a bonus. After Auston Matthews and John Tavares, Toronto doesn’t have much center depth. O’Reilly should be brought back to be the third-line center but can jump up to the second line when needed.
Hopefully, O’Reilly will see the Toronto Maple Leafs as a good fit and decide to re-sign here. Toronto GM Brad Treliving has a lot of work to do this off-season, and even if he re-signs O’Reilly, that is just one piece of the puzzle. If Treliving can get goaltender Ilya Samsonov re-signed, he can then try to find a trade partner for Matt Murray and get his $4.6 million cap hit off the books.
Treliving could essentially use the $4.6 million saved from moving Murray out to re-sign O’Reilly. I think O’Reilly at $4.6 million over 4-5 years is a good deal for both sides.