Montreal Canadiens: Updated Ryan O’Reilly trade rumours

Ryan O’Reilly is one of the names the Montreal Canadiens may want to pursue over the offseason, and the odds of him being moved are more than likely.

The end of the season interviews from the Buffalo Sabres hinted at a trade or two. Ryan O’Reilly has been the main focus of these and his comments on losing his love for the game at points of the year had him as one of the eventual moving parts. His capabilities as a centre, as well as his age and skillset, have made him a popular target among Montreal Canadiens fans.

There were only hunches of O’Reilly being the player to go. However, Darren Dreger has recently added more weight to the situation. Via Jeremy White on Twitter, Dreger has said that there is a greater chance the Sabres move on from the 27-year-old.

Jason Botterill acquired prospect Daniel O’Regan, a 2019 first-round pick (since Kane resigned), and a conditional fourth in 2020. Whatever Buffalo gets in exchange for O’Reilly will have to be more immediate and able to contribute to the team quickly. If you combine that with the past report that a Mike Richards type of deal is what it will take to acquire O’Reilly, our original thoughts on what the Montreal Canadiens would have to give up, fit the mould.

Any combination of Alex Galchenyuk, Nikita Scherbak, and/or Victor Mete make the most sense as an asking price from Buffalo. Not to mention one of their second-round picks which would have to be part of it. Botterill could even choose to ask for Noah Juulsen to be part of any package.

Seeing as how all four of those names still have room to grow, it may not be worth it long-term which Trevor Timmins pinpointed as an organizational focus. Additionally, teams in the same division aren’t willing to make trades of this magnitude with each other.

Knowing the way Marc Bergevin handles transactions, he’s probably reached out to the Sabres in one way or another. That’s part of a general manager doing their due diligence. Whether anything comes out of it is something that may not be answered until the draft.

Next: Going off the board at the draft

It wouldn’t be surprising to learn that the Montreal Canadiens are one of the teams interested days before the deal takes place. Whether Montreal is the destination for O’Reilly depends on whether Bergevin is willing to pay the price.