The Nashville Predators could deal veteran Ryan O’Reilly as the team looks to retool under new general manager Chris MacFarland.
The Predators have gotten off to a mediocre start to this season, with a 4-4-5 record that’s about as average as it gets.
After missing the playoffs the last two seasons, the team hired MacFarland away from the Colorado Avalanche to lead the Predators, and he has made quite a few moves since taking over the team this summer.
However, he still has another major bullet he can trade, and that’s O’Reilly, the veteran center who could very well be moved by Nashville at some point this season.
Ryan O’Reilly Could Be Traded By Nashville
According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Predators are ready to retool, and with no contract extension looming for O’Reilly in Nashville, teams are expected to call up MacFarlane and ask the Predators what the price would be for him.
“O’Reilly is a pending UFA, Nashville appears ready to accept a retool, and other teams have been lusting after him for years. Don’t believe there’s been much conversation about an extension, either,” Friedman wrote in his latest edition of 32 Thoughts on Sportsnet.
Ryan O’Reilly Right Now
The 35-year-old O’Reilly is in his fourth year with the Predators. This season, he is having a great start to his year, having played in 13 games for the Predators with 7 goals and 14 points so far.
He is in the final year of his contract with Nashville and only makes $4.5 million, which is an absolute bargain of a deal considering his level of production on the ice, his strong two-way play, his leadership, and his playoff experience.
Should Nashville make O’Reilly available, and it seems like that will be the case, then fans of any Stanley Cup contender should expect their team to make a phone call and inquire what the asking price would be.
Presumably, the Predators would be asking for at least one first-round pick back plus another pick or a prospect and/or a roster player, and they might just get it given O’Reilly’s cheap contract and his production.
Predators Could Deal Veteran Ryan O’Reilly