U.S. Born Phenom Ready For the OHL

By Scott Hamburger

On May 5th, the Mississauga Ice Dogs made 16 year old Patrick O’Sullivan the first overall pick in this years OHL priority draft. Making him only the second USA born player to be selected 1st overall. “This O’Sullivan kid is gonna be something, we watched him play one night in his junior A league and he was the most dominant player on the ice scoring 2 goals and 2 assists, we decided right then that he was the best player available in the 1985 draft.” said Ice Dogs GM Don Cherry. While only 16, he’s shown that he has the talent and the heart to make the jump into the Ontario Hockey League, and his competitive attitude should make the transition easy on him.

Playing with guys a lot older than him will be nothing new to Patrick. This past season O’Sullivan was the youngest on his U.S.A. Development Team (Under-17). In league and international play O’Sullivan lead his team, scoring 33 goals with 51 assists in just 63 games this season. Which was good enough to earn him spots on both the NAHL All Star Game and the All rookie team. “He’s got a great hockey sense and always knows where everyone is on the ice.” says team mate Greg Goodnough. Although he shows a lot of maturity and confidence on the ice, he won’t let his early success get to his head. “I had an alright year, I’m pretty happy with the way things turned out. I would have liked to make the playoffs in the NAHL but winning the gold at Christmas was the best moment of my life.” said O’Sullivan. “Pat has great hands, and can stick handle and make plays at very high speed with his head up. He competes hard and is a great set-up guy but can also put the puck home.” Said Ryan Whitney of the Under-18 team.

But the past, is the past, and now O’Sullivan is thinking about the future. His first OHL training camp is just a few months away, and he seems as calm as a 4 year veteran of the league. “I am not nervous at all, I’m going into my 4th year of junior hockey so the nervousness is basically gone by now.” “I’m really looking forward to this up coming season, I am really looking forward to playing with Patrick Jarrett and improving our teams record” said O’Sullivan when asked for his feelings on being drafted by the Ice Dogs. That very “team first attitude” is what will help him succeed in what he calls “A quicker league in which the players are bigger and stronger.” “I’ll be ready and looking forward to the challenge” added Patrick. “I feel the OHL is the best developmental league in the world and it best prepares you for the NHL style game.”

Is it his speed, hands, vision, passing, shot or just his great attitude and confidence that has Ice Dogs GM Don Cherry comparing him to the likes of Steve Yzerman? It’s a very rare thing to find such a blend of skills, especially from a kid who’s only 16 years old. I only see Patrick improving with time because of his love for the sport and he WANTS to learn and get better. That might be his MOST important characteristics of all. At this point the best thing for him is experience. Keep your eyes and ears open for the name Patrick O’Sullivan, I have a feeling that you’ll be hearing it a lot from now on.