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On the heels of the signing of former Detroit second-round pick Robert Mastrosimone and Nashville third-rounder David Farrance to AHL contracts, the Toronto Marlies continued to load up on talent on Friday with the signing of former first round pick Jay O’Brien on a one-year minor-league deal.
The 23-year-old center was a 19th overall selection of the Philadelphia Flyers in 2018 (10 spots ahead of the Leafs selection of Rasmus Sandin) and was a teammate of both Mastrosimone and Farrance at Boston University.
O’Brien had 80 points (36 goals and 44 assists) in 79 NCAA games in three seasons at BU, but his selection by Ron Hextall’s previous administration in Philadelphia, as well as frequent injuries (concussions, shoulder, hip/knee) throughout his college career contributed to a lack of interest from either former GM Chuck Fletcher or new Flyers GM Danny Briere.
The signing of O’Brien is the second as much from the pool of college players that became available as unrestricted free agents on August 15, which could be an indicator of making the Marlies a much more complete club under new bench boss John Gruden.
According to Hockey Prospect.com’s Black Book in his draft year, “O’Brien is known as an excellent skater with an explosive first-step which he uses to surprise his opponents and beat them one-on-one when driving wide or when rushing the puck up the ice. His puck-skills are good, he’s got soft-hands and can utilize a variety of dekes to beat defenders one-on-one or to bait an opponent into re-opening a shooting lane where he can use his wrist-shot.”
Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
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