Tribute Ryan O'Reilly welcome to the Toronto Maple Leafs appreciation thread

[IPS]

Can honestly see ROR shoving Tavares out of the #2C hole.

 

[Gabriel426]

And he shut down the MacKinnon line in the playoffs just what, 8 months ago? He hasn't declined and fallen off anywhere near as much as haters claim. ROR has struggled this year, by his standards, because he couldn't find consistent chemistry with Kyrou and his most often linemate was Josh Leivo. He has gotten the toughest matchups in the league and is constantly taking D-Zone faceoffs. Then, he broke his foot blocking a shot right when it looked like he was going to break through. I promise you, Dude is currently at minimum 90% of the player he was when he was the Selke Award winning, Conn Smythe Award winning, Stanley Cup Champion. Maple Leaf fans, to fully appreciate ROR, watch this man carefully when he is on the ice, analyze his every move and you will see that he impacts the game by doing the little things consistently right more than virtually anyone, even if he isn't on the score sheet.

The Leafs should deploy him as a center somewhere, if even on the third line, and use him to shut down the biggest threat line of your opponent while simultaneously opening up better matchups for your more threatening scoring lines. That is what ROR was born to do and only one player on Earth arguably does that better, and that player is a certain Center in Boston you may have heard of.

ROR is also someone I love watching and I can't wait to see him with the Leafs.

People will be surprised how defensively good the forwards will be on every line

AM on one line, MM on another, follow by ROR and Kampf. And you add in Acciari, Bunting, Engvall, JT and Willie on the side. I would say, they are pretty good, lol.

 

[authentic]

Can honestly see ROR shoving Tavares out of the #2C hole.

If he's still this good then that's definitely something to be excited about.

 

[Confucius]

Nice, he will play his 1000th game as a leaf. Welcome aboard.

 

[Gabriel426]

Can honestly see ROR shoving Tavares out of the #2C hole.

If he's still this good then that's definitely something to be excited about.

He just did since JT is his LW tonight

 

[IPS]

He just did since JT is his LW tonight

I didn't expect it to happen so soon. Consider me pleasantly surprised.

 

[WillyC]

That first shift… it’s happening.

 

[William Hylander]

He's gonna score on and off the ice quite a bit. Looking good so far.

 

[Peace Frog]

I was thinking of it today. Maybe for the playoffs - would feel better about it if he re-signs.

Yeah, for sure

 

[Peace Frog]

Keefe is going to try lots of different looks. I wouldn’t read into anything right now. There’s lots of options now. I’m sure we’ll see ROR in the 3C slot soon. Heck, maybe even tomorrow?

Edit: Sorry, I forgot to quote the post about ROR bumping JT out of the 2C spot.

 

[thewave]

 

[rojac]

I didn't expect it to happen so soon. Consider me pleasantly surprised.

I suspect the main reason for putting him in that position is that he has played with both Marner and Tavares before in international games. And they may have felt that he'd slip in easier by having him center the lane rather than worrying about playing a different position. I wouldn't be surprised if they run that same line out there tomorrow night against Chicago but then start looking at other combos over the next couple of weeks.

 

[LeafsNation75]

 

[Peace Frog]

Delete

 

[Rob Brown]

Oh baby

 

[Mickey Marner]

Looked solid for his first game.

 

[yurnxt]

I'm personally wondering what he could look like with Marner. The hockey IQ and defensive ability between those two alone would be a nightmare for the other team. They'll probably already be on the same pk unit forward-wise but it's tempting to run:

Matthews-Nylander
ROR-Marner
Tavares-Knies

And when the Leafs need to protect a lead or get another goal: ROR-Matthews-Marner

I love that they put JT at wing for ROR because while I'm confident ROR can effectively play wing, he NEEDS to be in the middle of the ice to control the play, shut down the opposition and for ROR to be able to get the most out of his ridiculously active stick and positioning instincts. You want that guy in the middle of the ice whether it's on a line with JT or on a different line all together. If he is on a line with JT, it is likely JT able to do more from the wing than ROR.

As I've said before, playing ROR anywhere else but the middle is a waste of his full capabilities and neuters what he brings to the table somewhat.

 

[LeafsNation75]

During O'Reilly's first shift of the game here was Joe Bowen's broadcast of it and at one point he said, "O'Reilly to Rielly, I knew this was going to be difficult."

After the trade was announced I knew he would say something like that if O'Reilly and Rielly were on the ice together and passed the puck to each other.

 

[BayStBullies]

What a beauty. I need an O'Reilly St. Pats jersey.

 

[LeafsNation75]

 

[Dekes For Days]

I think O'Rielly has individually looked good through the first couple games, but I'm not sure the line configuration really works that well.

We find ourselves in a rare situation of having 5 players we'd really want to have at center, and one of them has to move to wing. I think Acciari probably makes the most sense to move to wing, as he's probably our worst faceoff guy, and it frees him up to utilize his physicality along the boards.

Once Knies signs (assuming a maybe optimistic transition), it would be awesome to run:

Bunting - Matthews - Marner
Kerfoot - Tavares - Nylander
Knies - O'Rielly - Jarnkrok
Engvall - Kampf - Acciari

Line 1 was one of the best lines in the league when it was together. Matthews and Marner have insane chemistry, and Marner amplifies Matthews' best asset. It gives that line two selke caliber forwards, helping to shut down the opponent's best lines as well. Bunting has proven to be a skilled triggerman to capitalize on Marner's playmaking and the pressure the duo can create.

Line 2's configuration gets a lot of hate, but in the 540 minutes at 5v5 that they've had together since 2020, they have a 54.8 xGF% and a positive goal differential despite horrible goaltending behind them. They've actually produced pretty well as a line, and while they were only together for 44 minutes this season, they were dominant in that time. Kerfoot has better chemistry with Nylander and Tavares than most players on our team, and their shots help cover for Kerfoot's weakness in that area and gives Kerfoot somebody to capitalize on his playmaking. And it gives Tavares two fast players to help cover for his speed. People might feel better about this being a line with more scoring from the 3rd line.

Line 3's configuration gives Knies two defensively responsible forwards to help ease him into the NHL, and gives Knies a chance to learn from O'Rielly. Knies and Jarnkrok both have shots to capitalize on O'Rielly's playmaking, and Jarnkrok has good speed to cover for O'Rielly.

Line 4 is a defensive master, and not too far off last year's 3rd line. Capable of generating a cycle, and a good mix of playmaking, shots, speed, physicality, etc. Not a concern if it gets line matched or caught out, and has two centers in the event of an icing.

All lines have at least two defensively conscious players, at least one good faceoff centreman, and a good balance of skillsets. Three have good to great offensive potential, and the other has a good chance to outperform their matchup, and aren't a concern in terms of getting caught.

I'm struggling to find a forward lineup that can match up to that.

 

[koyvoo]

A player like this, who can elevate their compete level at this time of year…there is no stat to properly measure balls.

I hope certain people are starting to learn. You needs stars. But you need warriors, too.

 

[ZEBROA]

Great player!

 

[Puckstuff]

I honestly feel like O'Reilly's been our best player in the playoffs. Him and Marner of course. Morgan is a close 3rd. O'Reilly is much more of the Bergeron/Toews mold then Matthews imo. If Matthews is your 3rd or 4th best player in the playoffs, that's a scary thought for other teams.

 

[TorMapleJays]

TNT was gushing about him.