As the Edmonton Oilers repeat last season's 'trick' of starting the campaign slowly, the organisation continues to take care of business off the ice. This includes making a key signing earlier this week.
As announced by the team on their official website, Sam O’Reilly has been signed to a three-year entry-level deal. As is usually the case with these types of contracts, the financial terms were not disclosed.
The Oilers are extremely high on O'Reilly, as evidenced by them moving up in the 2024 draft in order to select him. This involved acquiring the Philadelphia Flyers' first round pick for this year, in return for their own first rounder in either 2025 or 2026 (with certain conditions).
There was minor surprise among some critics, about the Oilers' decision to put themselves in position to select the 18-year-old so high at number 32 overall. However, all that matters is that they liked him enough to do what they did.
O’Reilly raises his stock during preseason
Along these lines, O'Reilly started to justify the decision with an impressive showing during training camp. He then appeared in four preseason games for the Oilers, which included scoring an exquisite goal in his first game.
Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch was extremely pleased with what he saw from the the Toronto, Ontario native at the time. As per Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal, Knoblauch said:
""It’s a big jump to go from junior to an NHL camp for the first time and we gave him a lot of responsibilities, either in a checking role, or playing with more offensive guys. He had penalty-kill work, some power play time and, everything we gave him, he handled well. He showed why our scouting staff believed in him.""
Average so far in London
Since returning to the Knights in the OHL, O'Reilly hasn't exactly set the world on fire. He has produced five points (two goals and three assists) in seven games, and has a -3 rating which is tied for third-worst on the team.
In fairness though it is early, with most players on the Knights still trying to find their grove, as evidenced by a 5-4-0 record at the time of writing. Further, for some context, last season O'Reilly had 68 points (25 goals and 43 assists) and a +34 rating in 84 combined regular season and playoff games.
Regardless, the Oilers are excited about what O'Reilly potentially offers to the organisation down the road, with him projected to be one of their two centres in the bottom six. As we previously wrote, his pre-draft scouting report marked him as a strong two-way player, with a high hockey IQ, good passing skills and an excellent work-ethic.
As a final note in reference to the talent level of the right-shot forward, consider that he is the Oilers' number two prospect in the organisation. The future looks bright for him, so fans will do well to keep an eye on his progress in the coming years.