'I Felt The Passion': Predators' Luke Schenn and Ryan O'Reilly Look Back on Time Playing for Maple Leafs
Both players are returning to play in Toronto for the first time since getting to the second round with the Maple Leafs last spring.
Two familiar faces walked into Scotiabank Arena on Saturday morning, dawning the blue and gold rather than the blue and white.
Ryan O'Reilly and Luke Schenn took to the ice for the first time in Toronto since their playoff exit this past spring. Both players signed deals with the Nashhille Predators on July 1 — O'Reilly signing a four-year, $18 million deal and Schenn inking a three-year, $8.25 million contract.
The two players were massive additions from Toronto ahead of the playoffs in April. Both in their own contributed majorly to the team's ability to send the Tampa Bay Lightning home in the first round.
Though now, seven months removed, and on a different team, again, does it feel different for Schenn walking into Scotiabank Arena?
"It does, actually," the veteran defenseman said. "My first time leaving was a bit of some adversity along the way being a young guy, had some ups and downs, and left and got traded here. But this time was a little bit different, being an older guy, and getting the chance to view it from a different perspective and almost a different lens, at totally different chapter of my career.
"So, yeah, it feels different. All the time I've had with the Leafs, I appreciated every moment of it. The fans were always so good to me. I felt the passion that the city has here behind the team and I feel very fortunate that I got the chance to experience that in the playoff run with our guys last year."
O'Reilly is in a similar boat to Schenn. Sort of. Although he wasn't drafted by Toronto, the 32-year-old was still a fan of the team growing up. And even he says it feels different stepping foot inside the Maple Leafs' rink on a different team.
"I think I've got close with a lot of those guys over there. It's always difficult playing against your friends and guys that you know well. But at the end of the day, though, it is another game and I have been traded a lot, so I've had the experience before. But, yeah, it's always a little different," O'Reilly said on Saturday morning.
Playing for a team such as the Maple Leafs — with the history, the fans, and everything else that comes along it — can be a lot. However, for someone like Schenn, who dawns a smile when a question is asked about Toronto, playing here was just the icing on the cake.
"Getting the chance to come back the second time around, I mean, that was a dream come true," Schenn said on Saturday morning. "Once I got traded the first time, I didn't think it was probably going to happen, even though I always thought about it in the back of my mind. It was special to come back and [I'll] cherish all the time I had here with the Leafs."
O'Reilly gave the same sentiments.
"I wasn't here for a very long time, but going through the playoffs together and things like that, it was definitely something special," the 32-year-old said. "I really enjoyed my time here, it was such an amazing experience, and yeah, it's always weird coming back to an old team. Even though I wasn't here [for a long time], I've definitely been through a lot here."
Toronto had a chance, prior to free agency, to take a run at both guys to try and sign them. Ultimately, it didn't work out for either player to remain in Toronto. For Schenn, who understands "the passion" that this city has for hockey, why didn't it work out, and to add on, was it poignant that it the two sides couldn't get a deal done?
"I mean, obviously, [I] ended up in a great spot in Nashville. Real happy to be here and proud to be a part of this organization," Schenn said.
"But it was just so many moving parts after the season. You have your year-end meetings with one general manager and another one comes in, and I had some great conversations with [Brad Treliving] too.
"At the end of the day, it's business. I mean, on their end, and from a player's standpoint, too. They had some guys internally that they got to look after and take care of. But there's no question, I always loved Toronto and it was talked about coming back, but I mean, at the end of the day, I wound up in a great spot and I'm really happy."
When returning to an old team, after not re-signing with them during free-agency, there can be some mixed emotions from fans. That could especially be the case for O'Reilly, given the impact he made on the Maple Leafs during the series against the Lightning.
So, when stepping foot onto the ice for game action for the first time since being eliminated by the Florida Panthers in May, what are O'Reilly's expectations of the reaction from fans?
"I don't really know. I haven't thought too much about it," O'Reilly said.
"But for me personally, [I'm] focused on winning a hockey game. They're good team here, obviously the Leafs are so good, we have to be good defensively, make it difficult on them. But the plan here is to get two points and win."
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