Ryan O’Reilly is no stranger to being nominated for a certain NHL honor, but that doesn’t mean it ever gets old.
The Predators alternate captain is the team’s nominee for the 2025 King Clancy Memorial Trophy, an accolade presented annually "to the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.”
O’Reilly, a 16-year NHL veteran, has been nominated for the Clancy on three previous occasions with the St. Louis Blues, but this time around in Nashville might just be the one.
"It's always special,” O’Reilly said of the nomination. “Being an NHL player is one thing, and if you make an impact in the community and help out in any way, it’s something that's really more special. Growing up with my family, my parents being a foster family and bringing kids in, I saw firsthand [the importance] to help and help out in any way you can. So, any type of honor for something like this is truly special.”
O’Reilly has become a consistent presence in the Nashville community during his two seasons with the Predators, but he’s best known for his 90’s Mighty RO’R program.
Started in St. Louis after O’Reilly had a similar initiative in Buffalo when he played for the Sabres, the program provides young community all-stars from the Middle Tennessee area who display core character traits - courage, compassion, leadership, perseverance and respect - with an unforgettable Preds game experience.
Parents, teachers, coaches and Preds fans nominate Middle Tennessee children ages 16 and under by describing ways the nominee exemplifies these core characteristics and go above and beyond for others.
“I just know how tough it can be to be a kid, and I really wanted to recognize kids and get a chance to meet kids going above and beyond and or going through something hard and still being amazing,” O’Reilly said. “They could use a little spark, and it has just been an amazing program… I get to meet these people and kind of take their mind off everything, see a game and get to pretty much say, ‘Keep it going.’ The world needs more people like these kids I get to meet.”
For O’Reilly, getting involved off the ice was a no-brainer as soon as he became an NHLer back in 2009 with Colorado. That mindset was instilled at a young age in the O’Reilly household with his parents, who fostered nearly 50 children over the span of his childhood.
As a result, the desire to use his platform to make a difference somehow, some way, has always been there.
“Just my family and how much they've done, I feel it's something so important,” O’Reilly said of giving back. “One of the coolest things about being an NHL player is to be able to make an impact. I think that's such a powerful thing that you can make a kid’s day by saying, ‘Hi,’ and giving time and being in the community. Just showing your face and engaging with people can actually make an impact, and I think that's something that we all take for granted at times. It’s just such a powerful thing, and it's an amazing thing that we can be able to do.”
Not only does the Clancy recognize contributions off the ice, but the award also takes into account what’s accomplished when the puck is dropped.
Everyone knows the Predators haven’t achieved what they would have preferred on the ice this season, but that’s only provided O’Reilly a chance to grow as a leader - especially when resolve is tested.
“Obviously, this year has been tough with high expectations and not having the success we wanted,” O’Reilly said. “But to be able to show up to the rink every day and keep working, I think, is such an important thing. Some of my programs sometimes, things don't go the way you expected, and unfortunate things happen. What I've learned through a lot of these kids is that we keep going, we keep trying to make this a better place and keep trying to work and get better as a person.”
No matter what the scoreboard says at the end of the night, O’Reilly often has things put in perspective when he meets with some of his biggest fans before the ride home.
Those moments, O’Reilly says, are what gives him hope no matter the circumstance. And it’s why this Clancy nominee will keep on making the world a better place no matter what his trophy case looks like.
"I got into a lot of frustration this year,” O’Reilly said. “A lot of games you’re leaving and it’s, selfishly, such an amazing gift for myself to see these kids, because it does put things into perspective for myself. Knowing what kids are going through - losing people in their lives, or fighting disease - to get a chance to meet these kids [is special]. I definitely think my family loves that I come home a little happier no matter what the result is of the game. But it does put things in perspective, and kind of inspires me to just keep moving on and doing more. It is a special thing.”
