Jeffrey O'Neill (born February 23, 1976) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

broadcaster and former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

player in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL). He played 12 seasons with the

Hartford Whalers The Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to ...

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...

and the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

Playing career

Minor hockey

O'Neill grew up in the community of King City, north of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, playing minor hockey for the King City Kings MHA as a youth. He grew up with two older brothers, Don and Ryan, both of whom played hockey. O'Neill played in the 1990

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament (french: Tournoi international de hockey pee-wee de Québec) is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, ...

with the Richmond Hill-Vaughan Kings

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cla ...

team from the

Ontario Minor Hockey Association The Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) is a minor ice hockey governing body in Ontario. The OMHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation and Hockey Canada. History The OMHA was founded on November 30, 1940, after a merger of the Ontari ...

. As a 14-year-old, he played at the Midget level with his brother Ryan — almost three years younger than some of his peers. At 15, O'Neill signed with the

Thornhill Thunderbirds The Thornhill Thunderbirds were a Canadian Junior "B" ice hockey team from Thornhill, Ontario. They played in the Central Junior B Hockey League. History The Thornhill Thunderbirds were a junior hockey team in Ontario. The team existed in two p ...

Jr. A club (OHA), whose coach Scott McLennan stated he had the skills to make it to the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; french: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario (LHO)) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–19. There are exceptions for overag ...

. O’Neill's number was later retired by the Thunderbirds in 2004. He finished his rookie season second in the Metro Junior Hockey League in scoring. O'Neill was the first overall selection of the

Guelph Storm The Guelph Storm are a major junior ice hockey team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. They have played in the OHL since the 1991–92 season. The team plays home games at the Sleeman Centre. History The franchise started as the Toronto Marlb ...

in the 1992 OHL Priority Selection, held at

Maple Leaf Gardens Maple Leaf Gardens is a historic building located at the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was initially constructed in 1931 as an arena to host ice hockey games, though it has sinc ...

in June 1992. He was named OHL Rookie of the Year that year after scoring 79 points in 65 games with the upstart Storm. His point total of 79 for a 16-year-old was the second highest total by a 16-year-old since

Kirk Muller Kirk Christopher Muller (born February 8, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger who played in the National Hockey League for 19 seasons from 1984–85 until 2002–03. He was also the head coach of the National Hockey League ...

recorded 112 with the

Guelph Platers The Guelph Platers were a junior ice hockey team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. The team played in the Ontario Hockey League, Ontario Junior Hockey League, and Southern Ontario Junior A Hockey League. They were originally known as the CMC's un ...

in 1982–83. He also played in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

for the

Springfield Falcons The Springfield Falcons were a former ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) and played in Springfield, Massachusetts, at the MassMutual Center. In 2016, the Falcons' franchise was purchased by the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Ar ...

. O'Neill spent three years in the OHL with the Storm before jumping to the NHL with the

in 1995. Also in 1995 he represented Canada at the world junior hockey championships winning a gold medal.

NHL

O'Neill was drafted in the first round, fifth overall by the Hartford Whalers (now

) in the

1994 NHL Entry Draft The 1994 NHL Entry Draft was the 32nd NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the Hartford Civic Center on June 28–29, 1994. The last active players in the NHL from this draft class were Patrik Elias and Eric Boulton, who both played their last NHL g ...

. He went to the 2002 Stanley Cup Final with the Hurricanes before losing to the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

. O'Neill was selected to the Eastern Conference team for the 2002–03 NHL All-Star Game. After joining the Whalers in 1995, he spent the next two seasons in Hartford before following the franchise to

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

in 1997. His point production increased after he arrived in Carolina, scoring at least 30 goals per season each year between 2000 and 2003. After his brother was killed in a car accident in Toronto in July 2005, O'Neill expressed a desire to play for the Maple Leafs, his hometown team, in order to be closer to family. On July 30, 2005, Carolina GM

Jim Rutherford James Earl Rutherford (born February 17, 1949) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender and front office executive. He is the president of hockey operations of the Vancouver Canucks. Prior to his position with the Canucks, Rutherf ...

traded O'Neill to the

for a conditional draft pick in the

2006 NHL Entry Draft The 2006 NHL Entry Draft was the 44th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 24, 2006. The draft order for the first 14 picks was decided during a lottery held on April 20, 2006. The draft was ...

. Re-united with former

coach

Paul Maurice Paul Maurice (born January 30, 1967) is a Canadian former ice hockey player and coach. He is the head coach of the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). At age 43, Maurice became the youngest coach in NHL history to coach 1,000 g ...

, O'Neill enjoyed a resurgence early in the 2006–2007 season and, benefiting from playing on the top line with

Mats Sundin Mats Johan Sundin (; born 13 February 1971) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey player who played the majority of his career in the National Hockey League (NHL), retiring in 2009. Originally drafted first overall in 1989, Sundin played ...

and

Alexander Steen Alexander Lennart Steen (born 1 March 1984) is a Canadian-born Swedish former professional ice hockey player. Steen was drafted 24th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, and started his NHL career with Toronto. Steen ...

, was briefly one of the top scorers. However, despite scoring 20 goals that season, O'Neill was benched for the remaining few games due to poor offensive performance. His poor performance combined with his fear of flying led him to consider retirement at the end of the season. After sitting out the following season, he was invited to the 2008-09 Training Camp by his former team, the

. Following Training Camp, O'Neill played in two exhibition games with the Hurricanes, but opted to retire before the official start of the season.

Broadcasting career

O'Neill is presently a sports broadcaster and hockey analyst with

The Sports Network The Sports Network (TSN) is a Canadian English language sports specialty channel established by the Labatt Brewing Company in 1984 as part of the first group of Canadian specialty cable channels. Since 2001, it has been majority-owned by comm ...

appearing on

broadcasts and

TSN Hockey ''TSN Hockey'' (formerly the ''NHL on TSN'' and ''The NHL Tonight on TSN'') is the blanket title used by TSN's broadcasts of the National Hockey League. After holding the Canadian national cable rights to the NHL from 1985 to 1998 and again from ...

programs. He currently co-hosts ''

OverDrive Overdrive may refer to: Organizations * OverDrive, Inc., a digital distributor of entertainment media ** OverDrive Media Console, a media player developed by OverDrive, Inc. * Overdrive PC, a subsidiary of Velocity Micro Technology * Overdrive ...

'' on

TSN Radio 1050 CHUM is a Canadian radio station in Toronto, Ontario, broadcasting on 1050 kHz. The station is owned and operated by Bell Media. CHUM's studios are co-located with The Sports Network, TSN at 9 Channel Nine Court in the Agincourt, Toronto, A ...

with host Bryan Hayes and fellow co-host and former goaltender

Jamie McLennan Jamie McLennan (born June 30, 1971) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who is now an analyst for TSN, TSN Radio 1050, NBC Sports and NHL Network. He spent eleven seasons in the National Hockey League with the New York Isl ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Jeff 1976 births Canadian ice hockey right wingers Canadian people of Irish descent Carolina Hurricanes players Guelph Storm players Hartford Whalers draft picks Hartford Whalers players Ice hockey people from Ontario King City Secondary School alumni Living people National Hockey League All-Stars National Hockey League first-round draft picks Sportspeople from King, Ontario Sportspeople from Richmond Hill, Ontario Toronto Maple Leafs players