Projection: Middle Six Forward

Tools: Creativity, Goal Scoring, Hockey Sense

Development Opportunities: Foot Speed, Lateral Agility

Reilly is a skilled and creative forward who was one of the primary offensive generators for the Marlboros this season. I've always liked how he used his handling tactically to create space. Using delays, making little moves to the middle, and playing a deceptive on-puck style to help drive offence. He has a clever off-puck game, smartly rotating into soft spots, putting himself in premium spots to receive a pass, and when he has his chances, he can finish with the best of them in the class. It’s a well-rounded offensive profile and one that could offer a valuable offensive piece at the OHL level.

I think he'll need to gain a step of explosiveness to fully dominate and hit his top six ceiling. Helping him continue to push the pace in transition and be more of a threat off the rush against better stronger faster competition. The hockey sense, shot, and goal-scoring touch should translate well and help establish him as a solid middle of the lineup forward who brings a secondary scoring punch and powerplay impact.

Puck skills were the central theme for Reilly. He started the game off strong, beating a guy wide and then cutting in toward the net with a slick drag move, finishing with crafty touches in tight to deke out the netminder. These displays of on-puck skills and confidence kept popping up over the game, as Reilly was evading checks all over the ice, weaving in and out of pressure, and advancing plays all through his desire to make a play with the puck on his stick. Reilly tallied the game winner, with a clever route off the rush to be available for a pass and finishing from in tight. Finishing touch and puck skills have been the selling points every time I’ve seen him, so it was not a surprise to see those tools yet again.

I liked Reilly’s all around offensive game. I thought he handled the puck well, showing a good feel for pressure, and extending plays just through his understanding of how much time and space he had to make a decision. On entries, Braden used smart delays into open pockets of space, curling toward the boards, granting time for his linemates’ routes to develop, and then finding open seams for passes. On his first goal, he quickly fired home a pass from Preston Hebert high to the far side and his second he jammed home a rebound after his own wrap-around chance. Offensive tools and goal scoring have been the main themes with Reilly all year so no surprise that’s what came through here.

Reilly was one of the top forwards on the Marlboros squad, always at the center of things offensively. I thought he displayed a solid blend of attacking off the rush and also impacting off the cycle and down low, contributing offensively in a wide variety of ways. He could beat defenders wide with bursts of speed, but also fend off pressure in tight quarters, spinning off checks down low and along the wall. Shift after shift Reilly was generating scoring chances, showing a desire to attack the scoring areas, drive the net, and penetrate. After a strong showing at the Titans Tournament, he is off to a hot start in GTHL league play, continuing to pot in goals and drive things for the Marlies.

Reilly’s skating was the engine behind his entire game, using a strong, fluid, powerful stride to carry pucks through the neutral zone and consistently generate offence off the rush. Shift after shift, he was the one transporting pucks coast to coast, dictating the game in transition. Upon entering the offensive zone, Braden was always looking to make something happen. He beat defenders wide, used delays to buy time, and picked apart the defence with clever passing through seams to the interior. All of this put him at the center of ETA’s offence, adding points on the scoresheet, but this combination of strong skater and transition impact was the key to me.

Reilly caught my eye for a few flashes, showing his ability to handle the puck in motion. I thought he was really fluid in how he could maintain momentum and shift laterally, all while handling the puck seamlessly and carrying pucks up ice. This combination of slick hands while in motion allowed him to make quick plays under pressure and keep play alive in tight spaces. Given these abilities, play seemed to flow through Braden at times, as he was typically the primary option on his line to transition pucks.