Southlake native Ryan O'Reilly taken by Red Wings

Ryan O'Reilly grew up a Stars fan.

So when the NHL announced that it would be holding the 2018 draft in Dallas, it was possible that the Southlake, Texas, native could end up being selected by his favorite team.

It also helped that the man who recruited him to the University of Denver, Jim Montgomery, was now the head coach of the Stars.

On Saturday, the young power forward got the next best thing. In the fourth round of the draft, he was taken by the Detroit Red Wings with the 98th pick.

“Kids like this are the product of the north Stars being moved to Dallas. ... He’s a big kid, missed some time. ... Needs to work on his skating, but he can really score," said E.J. Hradek of the NHL Network.

O'Reilly scored 21 goals and tallied 34 points in 45 games for the Madison Capitols of the United States Hockey League last season.

This story was originally published June 23, 2018 at 7:50 PM with the headline "Southlake native Ryan O'Reilly taken by Red Wings."