Blues acquire O'Reilly from Sabres for players, picks

[July 02, 2018]    The St. Louis Blues acquired veteran center Ryan O'Reilly from the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday night in exchange for centers Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and Tage Thompson, plus a first-round draft pick in 2019 and a second-round pick in 2021, according to multiple reports.

The Blues also will pick up O'Reilly's $7.5 million signing bonus as part of the trade. Buffalo had been on the hook for the money.

O'Reilly, 27, is a four-time 20-goal scorer who has notched at least 55 points in each of his past five seasons. The 6-foot-1, 216-pound playmaker came within three points of a career high last season as he notched 61 points (24 goals, 37 assists) in 81 games. He scored a career-high 15 goals on the power play.

In nine seasons with the Sabres and Colorado Avalanche, O'Reilly registered 422 points (155 goals, 267 assists) in 651 games. He appeared in 13 playoff games with Colorado, notching three goals and four assists, but never appeared in a postseason contest for the Sabres.

For parting with O'Reilly, the Sabres receive a pair of talented 30-year-olds in Berglund and Sobotka and a promising 20-year-old in Thompson.

Berglund is a powerful 6-foot-4, 219-pound Swede who has notched 322 career points (168 goals, 154 assists) in 694 games. His longtime teammate, Sobotka, has posted 155 points (47 goals, 108 assists) in 463 games.

Thompson was the Blues' first-round pick (No. 26 overall) in 2016. He had nine points (three goals, six assists) in 41 games as a rookie last season.

--Field Level Media

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