Jay O'Brien (born November 4, 1999) is an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

who is currently an

unrestricted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He was most recently under contract with the

Charlotte Checkers The Charlotte Checkers are a professional ice hockey team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the American Hockey League (AHL), and are the top minor league affiliate of the ...

of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

(AHL). He was drafted in the first round, 19th overall, by the

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

Early life

O'Brien was born in

Hingham, Massachusetts Hingham ( ) is a town in northern Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Plymouth County in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Part of the Greater Boston region, it is located on the South Shore (Massachusetts), South Shore of Massachusetts. At the 2020 ...

. Before his senior year of high school, O'Brien was given the option to leave

Thayer Academy Thayer Academy (TA) is a private, co-educational, college-preparatory day school located in Braintree, Massachusetts, United States. The academy, conceived in 1871 at the bequest of General Sylvanus Thayer, known as the father of the United St ...

early and join the

Youngstown Phantoms The Youngstown Phantoms are a Tier I junior ice hockey team that plays in the Eastern Conference of the United States Hockey League (USHL). The team plays home games at the 5,200-seat Covelli Centre in Youngstown, Ohio. The team was co-owned ...

in the

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the Midwestern United States and Great Plains, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. Th ...

. O'Brien chose to stay at Thayer Academy and put up 80 points in 30 games, a new career high, during the 2017–18 season. Following the 2017–18 season, O'Brien was awarded United States High School All-USA Hockey Player of the Year and was named to the USHS All-USA Hockey First Team. Although O'Brien spent the majority of the season playing high school league hockey, he did play one game for the Phantoms and joined the United States under-18 team for seven exhibition games.

Playing career

Following graduation from Thayer Academy, O'Brien joined the Providence College Friars in the

Hockey East The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for ...

of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

(NCAA). As a freshman with the Friars in the 2018–19 season, O'Brien struggled to define a role for himself, struggling through injury he was limited to 25 games, totalling just two goals and five points. Opting to enter the NCAA transfer system and end his tenure with Providence, O'Brien agreed to join Canadian junior team, the

Penticton Vees The Penticton Vees are a junior "A" ice hockey team from Penticton, British Columbia, Canada. They are a part of the British Columbia Hockey League. The junior Vees were founded in 1961, sharing the name of the senior hockey team, the Penticto ...

of the

British Columbia Hockey League The British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) is an independent Canadian Junior ice hockey league with 21 teams in British Columbia and Alberta. It was classified as a Junior "A" league within the Hockey Canada framework, until it became independe ...

(BCHL), for the 2019–20 season. He later agreed to join fellow Hockey East competitor in

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

for the 2020–21 season prior to his tenure in the BCHL. On August 15, 2023, O'Brien became a free agent when the Flyers opted not to sign him. He was later signed to a one-year AHL contract with the

Toronto Marlies The Toronto Marlies are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the American Hockey League (AHL) as a member of the North Division of the Eastern Conference. The Marlies are owned by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, a c ...

, the primary affiliate to 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. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

, on August 25, 2023. However, O'Brien was unable to make his professional debut with the Marlies, missing the entirety of the season through injury. As a free agent from the Marlies, O'Brien was signed to a one-year AHL contract with the Charlotte Checkers on July 2, 2024.

International play

After playing 10 games for the Friars, O'Brien was loaned to the United States national junior team to compete at the

2019 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2019 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (''2019 WJC'') was the 43rd edition of the Ice Hockey World Junior Championship. It began on December 26, 2018, and ended with the gold medal game being played on January 5, 2019. This marked the 1 ...

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:OBrien, Jay 1999 births Living people American men's ice hockey centers Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey players NHL first-round draft picks Penticton Vees players Philadelphia Flyers draft picks Providence Friars men's ice hockey players Youngstown Phantoms players 21st-century American sportsmen