Dennis O'Brien (ice hockey)

For other people with the same name, see Dennis O'Brien (disambiguation).

Dennis O'Brien
Born	(1949-06-10) June 10, 1949 Port Hope, Ontario, Canada
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position	Defence
Shot	Left
Played for	Minnesota North Stars Colorado Rockies Cleveland Barons Boston Bruins
NHL draft	14th overall, 1969 Minnesota North Stars
Playing career	1969–1980

Dennis Francis O'Brien (born 10 June 1949) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He featured in the 1978 Stanley Cup Finals with the Boston Bruins.

O'Brien is the uncle of former NHL player Shane O'Brien.

Playing career

O'Brien was selected by the Minnesota North Stars in the second round, 14th overall, of the 1969 NHL Amateur Draft, and played for the North Stars for the majority of his career, from 1970–71 to 1977–78. During his final season with the North Stars, he played just 13 games before being traded to the Colorado Rockies. After 16 games with the Rockies, he was traded to the Cleveland Barons and after 23 games as a Baron, he was traded to his fourth team of the season, the Boston Bruins, where he played 16 games. The final trade to the Bruins broke an NHL record for the most teams played for in one season. That record has since been equalled by Dave McLlwain in 1991–92, Mark Arcobello in 2014-15 and Jussi Jokinen in 2017-18.

After that busy season, O'Brien played parts of two more seasons in the NHL, both for the Bruins.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1968–69	St. Catharines Black Hawks	OHA		52	1	19	20	235		—	—	—	—	—
1969–70	Iowa Stars	CHL		72	2	18	20	331		11	0	2	2	30
1970–71	Cleveland Barons	AHL		27	1	6	7	100		—	—	—	—	—
1970–71	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		27	3	2	5	29		9	0	0	0	20
1971–72	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		70	3	6	9	108		3	0	1	1	11
1972–73	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		74	3	11	14	75		6	1	0	1	38
1973–74	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		77	5	12	17	166		—	—	—	—	—
1974–75	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		56	6	10	16	125		—	—	—	—	—
1975–76	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		78	1	14	15	187		—	—	—	—	—
1976–77	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		75	6	18	24	114		2	0	0	0	4
1977–78	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		13	0	2	2	32		—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	Colorado Rockies	NHL		16	0	2	2	12		—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	Cleveland Barons	NHL		23	0	3	3	31		—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	Boston Bruins	NHL		16	2	3	5	29		14	0	1	1	28
1978–79	Boston Bruins	NHL		64	2	8	10	107		—	—	—	—	—
1978–79	Rochester Americans	AHL		2	0	0	0	2		—	—	—	—	—
1979–80	Boston Bruins	NHL		3	0	0	0	2		—	—	—	—	—
1979–80	Binghamton Dusters	AHL		6	2	5	7	65		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				592	31	91	122	1017		34	1	2	3	101

See also

List of family relations in the NHL

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database