Brian O'Neill (ice hockey, born 1988)

Brian O'Neill (born June 1, 1988) is an American professional ice hockey forward for EV Zug of the National League (NL).

Brian O'Neill
O'Neill with the Manchester Monarchs in 2014
Born (1988-06-01) June 1, 1988 (age 36)
Yardley, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Right
NL team
Former teams
EV Zug
New Jersey Devils
Jokerit
National team  United States
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2012–present

Playing career

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Undrafted, O'Neill played collegiate hockey with Yale University of the ECAC before signing a one-year entry-level contract with the Los Angeles Kings at the conclusion of his senior year on March 15, 2012.[1] and was assigned to the Manchester Monarchs.

In the 2014–15 season, his third full season within the Kings organization, O'Neill was assigned to continue to play with the Manchester Monarchs of the AHL. He enjoyed a breakout year offensively with the Monarchs, leading the team and the league with 58 assists and 80 points in 71 games to be awarded the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL's most valuable player. In the post-season, O'Neill's continued his offensive pace in recording 10 goals and 20 points to help the Monarchs dominate the league and capture the Calder Cup in their final season in the AHL.

Before the 2015–16 season, O'Neill attended the Kings training camp and participated in the pre-season. O'Neill was unable to earn a roster spot in Los Angeles, and as a result, on the eve of the season, on October 6, 2015, the Kings traded O'Neill to the New Jersey Devils in return for a conditional 7th-round pick.[2] O'Neill made his NHL debut with the Devils on October 10, 2015, against the Washington Capitals. He played 22 games in the NHL for the Devils that season and also made 42 appearances for their AHL affiliate Albany Devils.[3]

On May 20, 2016, he signed a deal with Helsinki-based club Jokerit of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).[4] In December 2020, O'Neill, dubbed "Mr. Helsinki", signed a new three-year contract with Jokerit.

O'Neill was an offensive catalyst for six years in Jokerit before the club withdrew from the KHL during the 2021–22 season due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

As a free agent, O'Neill opted to continue his career abroad, agreeing to a two-year contract with Swiss club EV Zug of the NL on May 6, 2022.[5]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2004–05 Germantown Academy HS-PA 2 4 1 5
2005–06 Philadelphia Jr. Flyers 18U AAA AYHL 22 11 30 41 37
2006–07 Philadelphia Jr. Flyers 18U AAA AYHL 12 8 17 25 27
2007–08 Chicago Steel USHL 60 23 38 61 40 7 3 2 5 10
2008–09 Yale University ECAC 33 12 14 26 37
2009–10 Yale University ECAC 34 16 29 45 20
2010–11 Yale University ECAC 36 20 26 46 39
2011–12 Yale University ECAC 35 21 25 46 26
2011–12 Manchester Monarchs AHL 12 1 1 2 4 4 0 1 1 6
2012–13 Manchester Monarchs AHL 49 3 12 15 18 4 1 0 1 2
2013–14 Manchester Monarchs AHL 60 26 21 47 39
2014–15 Manchester Monarchs AHL 71 22 58 80 55 19 10 10 20 12
2015–16 New Jersey Devils NHL 22 0 2 2 8
2015–16 Albany Devils AHL 42 13 19 32 10 9 1 4 5 6
2016–17 Jokerit KHL 55 16 20 36 49 4 1 1 2 4
2017–18 Jokerit KHL 44 14 16 30 40 11 2 1 3 6
2018–19 Jokerit KHL 62 13 45 58 30 6 1 2 3 6
2019–20 Jokerit KHL 56 19 29 48 18 6 0 6 6 2
2020–21 Jokerit KHL 53 12 42 54 12 4 0 1 1 2
2021–22 Jokerit KHL 41 9 33 42 24
2022–23 EV Zug NLA 50 14 28 42 20
NHL totals 22 0 2 2 8
KHL totals 311 83 185 268 173 31 4 11 15 20

International

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Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2018 United States OG 7th 5 1 3 4 0
2022 United States OG 5th 4 1 2 3 0
Senior totals 9 2 5 7 0

Awards and honors

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Award Year
College
All-ECAC Hockey Rookie Team 2008–09
All-ECAC Hockey First Team 2010–11, 2011–12 [6]
ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Team 2011 [7]
AHCA East Second-Team All-American 2011–12
AHL
Les Cunningham Award 2014–15 [8]
John B. Sollenberger Trophy 2014–15
Second All-Star Team 2014–15
Calder Cup champion 2015 [9]

References

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  1. ^ "Kings sign forward Brian O'Neill to one-year entry level contract". Los Angeles Kings. March 15, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  2. ^ "Devils acquire Brian O'Neill from the Kings". New Jersey Devils. October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  3. ^ "TheAHL.com | The American Hockey League". theahl.com. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
  4. ^ "Brian O'Neill Jokereihin". Jokerit.com. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
  5. ^ "Brian O'Neill signs for two-years in Zug" (in German). EV Zug. May 6, 2022. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  6. ^ "All-League & All-Rookie Teams Announced". ECAC Hockey. March 18, 2011. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2011.
  7. ^ "All-Tournament Honors" (PDF). ECAC Hockey. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  8. ^ "Monarchs' O'Neill voted AHL MVP". American Hockey League. April 1, 2015. Archived from the original on April 18, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  9. ^ "Manchester defeats Utica to win Calder Cup". National Hockey League. June 19, 2015. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
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