I like the move, but the ramifications of the qualifying offer are the most under the radar part of this move.
O'Reilly is a very safe pick-up where at worst you're going to end up with a 40 point, elite defensive centre (with the upside being a Kesler or Bergeron Selke type). At $5m per that's not good value, but it's still productive (kind of like a less expensive J-Bouw)
The issue I see moving forward is the obvious collusion in the NHL regarding offer sheets and Feaster breaking that. He's already been rumored to not be the most "connected" GM and this certainly won't help. It certainly helps us on ice now and in the future, but it's going to be pretty difficult to get value in trades moving forwards I think.
It's probably worth the shot because as bad as I think this Flames team is, I think they fall outside of that top 4 in the draft where the talent level drops considerably.
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