NHL Draft 2018: 15 first-hand takeaways from a weekend in Dallas
By Josh Clark
15. The best moment of the 2018 NHL Draft
Growing up in Texas, there weren’t many special “homegrown” stories to follow in the hockey world.
Things have gotten more exciting in the recent past, though. For example, there have been a handful of players drafted over the past few years that grew up in Northeast Texas, such as Seth Jones and Blake Coleman.
But the 2018 draft brought an incredibly special moment with it for North Texas hockey fans. In the fourth round at pick 98, the Detroit Red Wings selected forward Ryan O’Reilly.
The significance behind it is that O’Reilly grew up in Southlake, Texas. Southlake sits just 30 minutes west of Dallas and is a vibrant town. But, like every city in Texas, it’s not known for building hockey players.
I grew up in a town called Keller, which sits just west of Southlake. So, this story is a little extra special to me.
O’Reilly worked his way up from the Dallas Stars Bantam Major AAA team to the Madison Capitals of the USHL for the past two seasons. He proved himself in a big way this past year (even though he spent most of February battling mono) by posting 21 goals and 34 points in 45 games. Considering he has solid size for an 18-year-old forward and has the skills to go along with it, the initial mock drafts had him going anywhere from rounds 3-5.
It was the early part of round four when his name was called. And yes, it was quite the sight and experience to behold.
When O’Reilly’s name was announced over the loud speaker, it wasn’t just the multitude of his friends and family and the Red Wings fans that were cheering. Dallas Stars fans made a big fuss about it as well. To be a Dallas native drafted in Dallas is an unreal occurrence. But to have Dallas Stars fans cheer for a pick made by the Detroit Red Wings? That’s just storybook.
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O’Reilly was given a loud ovation and got to realize his dream in front of his friends, family, and the hockey community that helped raise him and grow his love for the game. It doesn’t get more special than that for him or for the supporters of Texas hockey.