A day after Colorado defenseman Shane O’Brien said the contract impasse between the organization and Ryan O’Reilly was getting ugly, the situation got uglier.
O’Reilly’s father, Brian, took to Twitter on Thursday to air his grievances with the Colorado organization:@happy_jillmoore @coachbri1 sorry the ave’s don’t want him or place value on what he brings. They practice external control boss management.
— Brian O’Reilly (@coachbri1) February 14, 2013Sure will he loved it there and thought the fans were the best. So many great players the ave’s dump because of their management style $$$$$
— Brian O’Reilly (@coachbri1) February 14, 2013Here’s more, from Adrian Dater of the Denver Post:
I called Brian after seeing that, and while he didn’t want to say anything more publicly, it’s fair to say he didn’t back away from the comments. They’re still there for everybody to see.
So, there you have it, a bit of a peek into how things stand between the Avs and O’Reilly. Obviously, it’s a negative situation now and has been for a while. We can all debate the merits of his comments – especially those five dollar signs – but I’m not going to take sides here myself. This is between them.
O’Reilly almost certainly will be traded, but I wouldn’t count on a deal happening quickly. I believe, through my reporting, that the Avs are really going to take their time on this.
That last part is probably a big reason why the senior O’Reilly decided to make (and stand by) his comments -- the frustration level in this situation has boiled over to the point of no return.
It seems highly unlikely O’Reilly will play another game in an Avalanche uniform and, knowing that, the Avs feel they can and should take as much time as possible navigating trade waters.
The wildcard in all of this, of course, is the offer sheet.
Some team could make O’Reilly a monetary commitment Colorado is unwilling to match -- but there is a catch, as pointed out by Dater.
If a good team ponies up the cash and is willing to part with draft picks, the Avs might still match because the picks wouldn’t be as valuable (going on the assumption the team would finish high in the standings, and therefore receive a pick in the 20s.)
The end result is this: Colorado has all the power, and the O’Reilly camp is beyond frustrated with that.
The relationship has officially moved past ugly and is now entering toxic territory.