2025 NHL Draft Prospect Profile: Jake O'Brien

Upside Hockey's NHL Draft profile series: Aces Edition, Vol. 11

Upside Hockey’s prolific prospect profiler Trevor Curtis’s 2025 NHL draft eligible prospect profiles are all featured on our dedicated page for this with all featured prospects indexed in our table of contents alphabetically by last name. For the 2024 NHL Draft, for example, we had well over 200 prospect profiles completed. We’re now up to 185 for this draft class!

RHC Jake O'Brien (6'2",170lbs)

Brantford (OHL): 66gp/ 32g/ 66a/ 98pts, -2, 18 PIM

The Brantford Bulldogs were the 4th-best team in the OHL this season, but were eliminated in the second-round of the playoffs by the Oshawa Generals in six games. C Jake O'Brien (ranked # 4 NA Skaters, # 9 by McKenzie, # 11 by Button) was the team's 3rd-leading scorer during the regular-season, and was also 3rd in playoff scoring, with 3 goals and 11 points in 11 post-season contests.

Photo: Brandon Taylor/ OHL Images

The Bulldogs drafted him back when they were based in Hamilton, with the 8th-overall pick in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection. The young pivot also made an appearance in last summer's Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, but wasn't given a lot of ice-time or responsibility, and wound up with no points over 5 games - but he did come home with a Gold Medal.

O'Brien (who wears an "A" for the Bulldogs) is a cerebral, two-way center, with a robust playmaking toolkit, who started the season rather slowly with 20 points in his first 18 games, but piled up 50 points in the last 30. With a June 14th birthday, he has youth on his side, and thus, a longer developmental runway ahead of him- which he may need, as he's still quite physically raw.

Few players at this level can read the play as astutely as O'Brien can, or process as quickly. In 2023-24, O'Brien's 51 assists in his D-minus-1 year rank as the 12th-best of all-time for a U-17 player in the OHL, which demonstrates the caliber of playmaker he is. He exerts standout vision and creativity, and sets up a high number of grade "A" chances for teammates, with high-end passing skill- he simply makes players around him better.

He drives play, can control the pace of the game, picks defenses apart with his spatial awareness, and can manufacture open seams by shifting defenses, and drawing pressure. Patient and composed with the puck on his blade, he will hold on to the puck in order to wait for the right play to develop, and can connect on some of the more dynamic feeds across the ice and through traffic, with poise under pressure.

His passes are usually perfectly weighted, and right on the tape of his recipient, coming laced with deception to quash his opponents efforts to stop him. A natural playmaker, he can spot passing seams that few others at his level could, and has the soft hands and skill to transfer the puck over and under sticks, and between feet. He thrives on the powerplay, and quarterbacks the action from the half-wall with effectiveness.

O'Brien is a leader, often seen directing traffic in the offensive zone, but mostly leading by example through his hard work and high-motor. With sublime puck-skill, he has the ability to catch smoothly in-motion, and maintain tight control at top-speed; he can handle and protect the puck in tight spaces, and can beat defenders one-on-one with deception, and deft stickhandling maneuvers.

In transition, he moves through the neutral zone with pace and control, and makes short, quick feeds to expedite the play across exit and entry.

O'Brien only managed 13 goals in 2023-24, but has added a goal-scoring dimension this season, with a much more defined presence in the net-front area, more willingness to shoot, and a higher rate of success in getting to the middle. This has given him more unpredictability, and makes him much more dangerous.

He could still stand to use his shot more often, as he owns a deceptive release on a ripper of a shot that he can catch-and-release while in-flight. He doesn't rely solely on finesse to propel his game, as he is more than willing to battle in the greasy areas for possession, or to gain inside position- and he wins more than his fair share of pucks by applying physicality.

He provides a positive example for his teammates with his workmanlike approach to the game in all three zones - he's relentless and physical on the forecheck, hunting down puck-carriers with tenacity to cause breakdowns, turnovers, and uncontrolled play. O'Brien isn't just an offensive driver either, as he's a conscientious defensive player who is hard to play against with his constant disruption in all areas of the ice, and is a nuisance in every step of the backcheck.

In the defensive zone, he keeps plays to the outside, and snuffs enemy attempts to breach the middle with effective positioning, a potent stick, and a willingness to put his body on the line to block shots. Every time I see him play, I'm impressed by how engaged, and intense he is in defensive situations.

Skating-wise, O'Brien is above-average in the speed department, and shows power and fluidity in his stride, although his mechanics aren't 100% perfect. With more strength in his lower-body, he will gain the explosiveness he needs for the next level, as he already has a nice separation gear. He exhibits elusiveness and maneuverability on his edges, and can weave through traffic while evading checks.

Going forward, O'Brien's most pressing need is adding more strength and bulk to his slight frame, in order to be more effective in battles, and more assertive physically. This may also improve his faceoffs a bit, but more work is needed in this area, as he only finished at 44.7% on the dot this season. Scouts were quick to give up on O'Brien after the first few months of the season due to his slow start, with many calling him a future middle-six player in the pros, but there's no doubt now that he's a top-line NHL player in the making and deserves to be picked in the top-10 of this summer's draft.

See our 2025 NHL Prospect Profile home page for all of our profiles.

See where O’Brien landed in our most recent mock draft: