Well before he was traded to the Lightning earlier this week, Sam O’Reilly’s game was compared to that of Tampa Bay center Anthony Cirelli.
“A guy that people tell me I kind of play around the same style as him is a guy like Cirelli,” O’Reilly said by phone Thursday. “Sometimes my coaches will say that, too. So, he’s a really good guy to be compared to, for sure.
“But I mean, there’s still a lot of work to put into that. So, but yeah, he’s a good guy to take notes from: his game, he plays the right way, and it works out for him.”
O’Reilly, acquired from Edmonton Tuesday for Isaac Howard in a swap of former first-round picks, knows there’s a lot to do to live up to that observation. Cirelli is one of the top two-way forwards in the game, and this season he placed third in voting for the Selke Trophy, awarded to the league’s top defensive forward.
But if O’Reilly, 19, can become anywhere close to the player Cirelli is, the Lightning will be able to consider the trade a win, no matter how many times Howard drops to one knee and runs his glove over his helmet in an Oilers uniform to celebrate a goal.
Great teams are built through the middle, and you can’t have enough players with the dog-on-a-bone, 200-foot mentality at the center position on winning teams.
“I think I’m a two-way centerman that can play an offensive zone as well,” O’Reilly said. “But I like to start off in the D zone and then work up from there. I think I take a lot of pride in my defense in the D zone, and it’s a big part of my game, and where I get a lot of my ice time.
“I try to be a guy that a coach can rely on, and it starts on the defensive side. So, I like to take a lot of pride in that.”
Howard, the 31st overall pick in 2022, was not going to wear a Tampa Bay uniform. For the Lightning to get a strong two-way NHL center in return, especially considering they would have received only a late second-round compensatory pick in 2027 had they let Howard go unsigned, would count as a major victory for general manager Julien BriseBois.
The Lightning will be careful not to fall into the O’Reilly-Cirelli comparisons, though that kind of player mindset — trying to be someone who is tough to play against — is what they want to see from O’Reilly as he works his way up the development ladder.
But first things first, and O’Reilly’s immediate focus is on finding his footing with a new organization. He had just been in Edmonton for development camp last week, focused on his progress with the Oilers, when he received a call Tuesday telling him he was being traded to Tampa Bay.
“Obviously, it was a little bit of a shock, but when I found out it was Tampa I was really excited and really grateful,” he said. “Honestly, it’s a really good spot for me and just a good spot in general. It was a little bit of a whirlwind there, but the emotions have kind of calmed down now and I’m just thankful to be in a good spot.”
Like Cirelli, a fellow Toronto-area native, O’Reilly has been part of championship teams in the Ontario Hockey League, winning back-to-back Robertson Cups with the London Knights. This past season, O’Reilly helped the Knights to the prestigious Memorial Cup, beating Medicine Hat in the final to claim bragging rights as the top team in Canada’s major junior ranks.
In his second full season with London, the 6-foot-1, 190-pound O’Reilly set career highs with 28 goals and 71 points, and a plus-56 ratio that led all forwards on the team. He also had seven goals and 22 points, and was plus-24 in 17 OHL playoff games. He added two goals and five points in five Memorial Cup games.
His takeaways from the season?
“I think winning was obviously the biggest part, and learning how to win and what teams need to have to win,” O’Reilly said. “But, you know, just being more experienced and more reliable, that’s what I try and focus on, being a guy that can play in any situation of the game, whether it’s the last two minutes or it’s a PK or something like that.
“So, just being more responsible and a more well-rounded player all around and obviously trying to try to chip in as much of it offensively as I can, just helping my team win.”
O’Reilly, who turns 20 in March, will return to London for a third full season, with eyes on another OHL championship. He then will see a shot at pro hockey in the AHL, so he’s still likely a couple years away from being an option for the NHL club.
But as a player on an entry-level contract, he will be in Lightning training camp before returning to London.
O’Reilly didn’t get the benefit of working with the Lightning at last week’s development camp, but he said director of player development J.P. Cote is making a trip to Toronto this week to start working with him in preparation for this summer and camp.
“I’m kind of just trying to get to know everybody,” O’Reilly said. “It’s been good. They’re all really welcoming to me, and they seem really excited. So, it’s everything I want to hear, and I’m excited to get down and meet them in real life.”
O’Reilly said the past week was a good reminder that the NHL is a business.
“I was just there in Edmonton last week and it was a good time, but it happens quick and you’ve gotta be ready for it,” he said. “So, I’ll be ready to adjust to anything that comes at me. And to learn from new people, I’m excited. So, it’s an exciting time. You look at the best of it. And I’m grateful to be in such a good spot like Tampa.”
