Buffalo Sabres Ryan O’Reilly’s Court Date Adjourned Again

The Buffalo Sabres have been doing pretty well lately. They finally pulled out of a lengthy losing slump and managed to put together a pair of consecutive wins. Ultimately that semblance of a streak ended with a shootout loss on Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings, but overall — the team’s been solid.

One player who’s been doing well this season has been forward Ryan O’Reilly, who leads the Buffalo Sabres with 20 points in 25 games this season. O’Reilly’s eight goals are tied for most on the team with rookie Jack Eichel, and his 12 assists are second only to Rasmus Ristolainen‘s 13 in that category.

O’Reilly has also been stellar in the faceoff circle and, entering Tuesday’s game, led all NHL forwards in average ice time per game.

But, as I’ve written before, O’Reilly still needs to face the courts for his July 9th incident near London, Ontario – an event that could result in jail time or a fine, a suspended license, or a suspension from the NHL.

O’Reilly’s court date has now been adjourned six times, with the newest date scheduled for December 14 (per London’s AM980 News).

The Buffalo Sabres play in Detroit that night for a 7:30 pm puck drop.

For those who maybe aren’t aware, or too clear, on the timeline of how things have gone in the O’Reilly case, here’s a summary:

• July 9 (~4:05 am): O’Reilly was arrested and charged after his pickup truck reportedly crashed into a Tim Hortons in Lucan, Ontario, about 30 minutes from the city of London. O’Reilly reportedly kept driving, before leaving the vehicle on foot with his unnamed male passenger. The pair were eventually located less than a mile from the truck, and O’Reilly was served with an appearance ticket to show up in court in London on August 20. O’Reilly blood-alcohol content at the time was over 80 mg, or 0.08 – a low level, but still enough to be considered legally intoxicated.
• August 20: Scheduled court date #1; O’Reilly’s attorney appeared on his behalf. Adjourned.
• September 10: Scheduled court date #2. Adjourned.
• September 17: Buffalo Sabres report to training camp. Preseason begins four days later.
• October 1: Scheduled court date #3. Adjourned.
• October 22: Scheduled court date #4. Adjourned.
• November 5: Scheduled court date #5. Adjourned.
• November 22: Scheduled court date #6. Adjourned.
• December 14: Next court date.

At this point, a lot of fans have seemingly swept the whole situation under the rug. It’s easily forgotten about, particularly when O’Reilly’s been performing at such a solid rate in his first season with the Buffalo Sabres.

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Sabres fans are really starting to embrace O’Reilly, so much so that some have called for the team to strip Brian Gionta of his captaincy and give it to O’Reilly, who already has an A.

I suppose that train of thought comes with just ignoring the fact that the Sabres handed a leadership position to a player charged with driving a motor vehicle while ability impaired and leaving the scene of an accident – a stupid accident that can still come back and haunt him.

Potential penalties for the incident include up to six months in jail, fines between $400 and $2,000, seven demerit points on his license and a suspended license for up to two years.

That license suspension, of course, will be valid not only in Canada, but anywhere else as well – including the United States. Even if O’Reilly avoids jail time, without a license, he’d be unable to drive himself to practices, games, etc.

And that’s all without even considering the possibility that the NHL itself could choose to suspend him.

Next: Buffalo Sabres December Schedule Breakdown

At some point, it becomes almost ridiculous. The court date has been adjourned so many times, it’s *almost* hilarious. He’ll have to face the courts eventually, but will it be during the season? Perhaps during the All-Star break, assuming he isn’t named to the tournament? Or will it be pushed back until the summer? At what point does it become a situation where it’s a “you might as well just get it over with already!” thing? (Personally, I’m already hitting that point. Get it over with and deal with the consequences, whatever they may be.)

One way or another, it’s not something O’Reilly – or the Sabres – can run from forever.