Jake O'Brien

Jake O'Brien (born June 16, 2007) is a Canadian ice hockey player who is a centre and captain of the Brantford Bulldogs in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He was selected eighth overall by the Seattle Kraken in the 2025 NHL entry draft.

Personal life O'Brien was born on June 16, 2007, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to Dan O'Brien and Amy Turek. He was born into a hockey playing family as his mother played for the Toronto Aeros while his father played collegiate hockey at Clarkson University.

Playing career O'Brien started his junior ice hockey journey with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL). In the 2022–23 season, he captained the team and posted 16 goals and 17 assists over 34 games. At the 2023 OHL Cup, he led the team in scoring with seven goals and ten assists in seven games, setting a new franchise record for points in the tournament. His standout performance earned him the Tim Adams Memorial Trophy as the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

O'Brien was selected eighth overall by the Brantford Bulldogs in the 2023 OHL Draft and officially signed with the team on May 4, 2023. In his rookie campaign during the 2023–24 season, he tallied 13 goals and 51 assists over 61 games, setting new franchise records for assists and total points by a rookie. He led all first-year players in the OHL in points, assists, power-play goals, power-play assists, and points per game. His outstanding performance earned him the Emms Family Award for OHL Rookie of the Year, along with selections to both the CHL All-Rookie Team and the OHL First All-Rookie Team.

On January 9, 2025, O'Brien was appointed as the captain of the Eastern Conference team for the first-ever Connor McDavid OHL Top Prospects Game. He tallied three assists during the game and earned MVP honors for Team East.

Career statistics Bold indicates led league Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2022–23 Toronto Jr. Canadiens OJHL 34 16 17 33 6 — — — — — 2023–24 Brantford Bulldogs OHL 61 13 51 64 10 6 1 4 5 4 2024–25 Brantford Bulldogs OHL 66 32 66 98 18 11 3 8 11 6 2025–26 Brantford Bulldogs OHL 53 28 65 93 28 15 6 17 23 4OHL totals 180 73 182 255 56 32 10 29 39 14

Awards and honours Honours Year RefCHL All-Rookie Team 2024 OHL First All-Rookie Team 2024 Emms Family Award 2024