from Adrian Dater of the Denver Post,

Negotiations toward a new, long-term contract between the Avalanche and left wing Ryan O'Reilly proved fruitless, so the parties are headed to arbitration on July 23, an NHL source said.

While the Avs and O'Reilly could still avoid arbitration by agreeing to a deal before that, such a prospect appears unlikely.

What it means is this: O'Reilly will have the terms of his next contract dictated by an arbitrator, who will present the 23-year-old forward with the choice of either a one-year or two-year binding contract, and O'Reilly will have to decide one or the other.

O'Reilly's base salary of $6.5 million last season means that the arbitrator cannot award him anything less than 85 percent of that figure, which guarantees O'Reilly at least a $5.525 million salary with the Avs for 2014-15.

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