Photo Credit: Justin Odendhal/ Courier Post

Ron Hextall made a bold move selecting a high schooler from Thayer Academy in Jay O’Brien with the 19th overall pick at the 2018 NHL Draft, “I am a competitive Forward all around the ice,” O’Brien said, “I think the game well and use my speed and skill to create offense.“

O’Brien is a great skater and stick handler. He can reach top-end speeds in a matter of seconds, as he is very good at separating himself from his opponents. Hextall selected O’Brien to help aide the Flyers with scoring, but more importantly speed. The Flyers will need speedy natural goal scorers in the future, as the name of the game in today’s NHL is speed. There is no doubt O’Brien can eventually be that speedy spark to amp up the offense.

This young Flyers team seems destined for success in the future, with all the young budding prospects. Of course, now we can add O’Brien to the mix of budding young prospects, as he has gotten his career back on track in the BCHL with the Penticton Vees, “I want to win a championship, that was my goal coming into this year,” O’Brien said, “Also, being one of the Captains I wanted to show the younger guys what it takes to get there. Practicing hard, working out hard, taking care of your body etc.“

As O’Brien highlighted, he really has gotten his career back on track in a big way. One year removed from a nasty concussion that sidelined him for some time, and then O’Brien sustained a neck and shoulder injury that concluded his first season for the Providence Friars. O’Brien really couldn’t get anything going with his game because of injury, and it really took a toll on him mentally. However, he is soaring with the Vees with potting 24 goals, and registering 39 apples, “I train with a group in Boston called EPS,” O’Brien said, “It is a lot of speed and agility work combined with putting on strength. We skate usually once or twice a week later in the summer to work on different parts of our game. We are almost done with the regular season here so I’m focused on taking care of my body and going into playoffs healthy. It’s helped for sure.”

The young prospect in O’Brien was born on November 4, 1999, in Hingham, MA. This US-born player has busted his butt to get where he is at in his career. Nothing was handed to him by any means, he had to earn everything. He’s become good friends with Joel Farabee along the way, as the two have spent some time together while playing for the US National U18 Team for the USDP program. It may be one reason why O’Brien chose to attend Boston University in 2020-21, but for O’Brien there’s a pretty darn good hockey player he loves watching, “Being from Boston, I always loved watching Patrice Bergeron,” O’Brien says, “He plays the game the right way at both ends of the ice and is someone that I look up to. He carries himself the right way and is a leader with the Bruins. He can score, kill penalties, win draws, he is a do it all forward.“

This young prospect in O’Brien opened some eyes for Thayer Academy, as he has elite vision of the ice, and just has a knack for finishing plays. He’s just so good around the net. O’Brien just has elite hands to pot a big goal, to combine that with his speed….watch out.

The Flyers still have a lot of faith in this young man, for good reason, but for O’Brien, he knows he wouldn’t be here without that one special person, “There are a lot of people who help define me as a hockey player, but definitely my dad is the most important. We have built a rink in our backyard for as long as I can remember, and those are some of the greatest memories I have learning how to skate and stick handle.” O’Brien would also like to thank his favorite food Chicken Parmesan too for his good hockey skills, as well.

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