St. Louis Blues forward Ryan O’Reilly was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy Wednesday night as the MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
O’Reilly got the scoring started early in Game 7, later adding an assist to help the Blues to a 4-1 Game 7 victory against the Bruins in Boston to hoist the franchise’s first-ever Stanley Cup.
The centreman went on an incredible run during the Stanley Cup Final, with points in all but one game this series. His first-period marker Wednesday night extended his goal streak to four straight games and landed him in St. Louis’ history books, too.
He finishes the playoffs as the Blues’ post-season points leader with eight goals and 15 assists in 26 games and is tied for most overall points with Bruins forward Brad Marchand (9G, 14A).
The Blues landed O’Reilly in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres last summer, and the 28-year-old has clearly found new life with the midwest club as perhaps the missing piece for the contender to make the leap to the next level after several years of short playoff runs.
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