I understand the "disgruntledness" (not a word I know) of everyone in here.
But let's rewind to what quite a few people here were saying, not only here, but also on the Trade Forum.
We were putting on a "brave face" for the other teams' fans because we all said that if ROR signed an OS, we'd be happy, because that would give the Avs an "out" if you will, and say, "We didn't offer this contract, ______ did, we just matched it".
Well, let's look at some things that we KNOW of, in perspective:
A) We were told that ROR wouldn't sign an OS, and according to TPS that came straight from the horse's mouth.
B) Apparently there were at least 4 other teams that sent ROR an offer sheet, those of which he didn't sign
C) The contract that ROR signed is NO ONE's fault but Jay Feaster and The Calgary Flames Organization in my opinion.
Why do I believe that? Because he structured it in such a way that he believed that it would be a "poison pill" for the Avs to match it. We as fans are saying that ROR "isn't worth a 5m AAV" but we are also the SAME fans who when we see terrible Stastny trade proposals, one of the first responses we have is something along the lines of "The market will dictate Stastny's worth..."
Well, there were at least 5 teams who offered SOMETHING more than what the Avs offered him (one can assume) and we know at least one team who offered ROR the AAV of 5m. It seems like the market dictated Ryan's worth, and honestly, anyone in the same situation would take the money, I know I would. I'm not going to turn down a contract like that, and I don't expect Ryan or ANY other athlete in any other sport to leave money on the table...especially when the other side offers it.
I don't see anything wrong with Ryan O'Reilly admitting to the fact that in Professional Sports, ANYTHING can happen, so knowing the risk that all athletes in every sport take, I understand that in an athlete's already shortened career, they do need to get the most they can for themselves.
Joe Sakic knew it, he never left any money on the table at all, Peter Forsberg, Adam Foote, etc. they all knew. Otherwise if it WEREN'T about the money, we wouldn't have lost the players we lost at the end of the previous lockout (not comparing UFA vs RFA status of Forsberg/Foote vs ROR, just that ALL athletes look out for themselves).
Because in reality ROR is right, if he were to suffer a career ending injury tomorrow, right or wrong the Avalanche will move on from him, lest we all forget about Steve Moore.
I'm happy he's back, he will make our team better. He's 22 years old and I don't believe that he's even scratched the surface of what he's capable of in the NHL.