Doug O'Brien

Playing career

Doug O'Brien was picked 192nd overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the sixth round of the 2003 NHL draft. He played four years of major junior hockey in the QMJHL with the Hull/Gatineau Olympiques. During the 2003-04 season, he put up 63 points in 66 games and earned the league's award for best defenseman. O'Brien turned pro in 2004-05 with Tampa Bay's AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons. He got his first taste of the NHL at the end of the 2005-06 season, appearing in five games for the Lightning. After failing to crack the roster the following year, he was sent back to Springfield. On February 27, 2007, Tampa Bay traded him to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Joe Rullier, and he finished that season with Anaheim's AHL team, the Portland Pirates. Becoming a free agent, O'Brien signed with Lukko Rauma in Finland's SM-liiga for the 2007-08 campaign. He returned to North America on September 5, 2008, signing with the AHL's Rochester Americans. After 12 games with Rochester in 2008-09, he was sent down to the ECHL's Florida Everblades on November 11, 2009. O'Brien then moved to the Czech Republic, signing with Plzeň of the Czech Extraliga for the 2009-10 season. He spent the next season with Sparta Praha before stepping away from professional hockey in 2011.