(Michael Connell/Texas Stars Hockey)

In their second season as an American Hockey League franchise, the Utica Comets are playing in the Western Conference finals, competing for a chance to compete for the Calder Cup against the Grand Rapids Griffins, and while the flashy prospects, such as Sven Baertschi and Hunter Shinkaruk, have certainly done their part to get the club to this stage, one has to give credit to the AHL veterans for playing key roles on the team, and most specifically, captain and fan-favorite Cal O’Reilly.

O’Reilly, drafted by the Nashville Predators in the 5th round of the 2005 entry draft, has only partaken in 113 NHL contests (accumulating a respectable 41 points in the process), but has established himself as a very reliable AHL scorer, posting multiple campaigns that hover in the point-a-game range, and putting up 106 points in 128 games as a Utica Comet, including 61 in 76 this past regular season, while also earning a spot in the AHL all-star game. Despite not earning any ice-time in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks, O’Reilly plays a valuable role in the development of young talent down on the farm.

(Icon SMI)

Many of the Canucks prospects in Utica, such as the goaltender Jacob Markstrom and the aforementioned Baertschi, have praised the 28-year-old for his leadership qualities on and off the ice. O’Reilly’s 61 points led all Comets by a wide margin (18 points), and was voted coach’s MVP at the team awards night towards the end of the regular season. People always claim that it’s important for prospects to develop in a winning environment, and when it comes to American Hockey League action, it is simply not possible if a team is merely stacked with young prospects. Guys like O’Reilly are needed for success in this league, and he (along with others) are proving that down in Utica.

Likewise, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that some of the organization’s high-profile prospects have taken notes from O’Reilly in terms of offensive prowess. Despite never establishing himself as an everyday NHL’er, has, as mentioned above, consistently put together above-average offensive campaigns, and for some of the younger players on the Comets roster, that’s the type of guy they look up to; the decorated scorers who come out to play each season.

(Michael Connell/Texas Stars Hockey)

It’s also important to note that towards the end of the pre-season back in September, O’Reilly was one of the last players to be cut off the Canucks roster. The fact that highly touted prospects such as Shinkaruk and Nicklas Jensen were in the same boat as O’Reilly at that point of the proceedings shows that Canucks management thinks highly of the Ontario native, and that they do see some sort of upside in him.

This is not to say that O’Reilly, likely a career AHL’er, is irreplaceable, but if we give credit to a guy like Derek Dorsett for mentoring Bo Horvat in the NHL, why can’t we give a guy like Cal O’Reilly, or others such as Bobby Sanguinetti, a bit of praise for their work in Utica? It’s guys like him that leave an impression on the up-and-comers, and that’s something that should not go unnoticed.

The Utica Comets struggled into the hockey world with an 0-8-1-1 start in 2013. They are 91-50-11-5 since.

— OD Comets (@OD_Comets) May 29, 2015

@CanucksFanKevin @hedder40 @OD_Comets I also think Cal O'Reilly plays a huge role in that. Guy is as unselfish as they come.

— Ryan Sweet (@RyanIsSweet) May 29, 2015

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