O'Brien Makes History; 3 Bulldogs Selected in NHL Draft & 10 Bulldogs Head to Camps
OHL Brantford Bulldogs

O'Brien Makes History; 3 Bulldogs Selected in NHL Draft & 10 Bulldogs Head to Camps

June 30, 2025 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Brantford Bulldogs News Release


Jake O'Brien continued to make history with the Brantford Bulldogs on Friday night when the Bulldogs star center set a new franchise mark as the highest Bulldog ever selected to the NHL when the Seattle Kraken called his name 8th overall at the Peacock Theatre, breaking the record of linemate Marek Vanacker, selected 27th overall in 2024.

O'Brien was the 8th overall selection in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection Draft for the Bulldogs and has begun an assault on the record books. With 13 goals & 51 assists for 64 points in 61 games in his rookie season, O'Brien set franchise marks for assists & points while leading OHL rookies in points, assists, power-play goals, power-play assists & points-per-game on route to being named OHL Rookie of the Year for the 2023-24 season.

Taking his game to another level in the 2024-25 season, O'Brien posted 32 goals & 66 assists for 98 points in 66 games (adding another 11 points in 11 playoff games). O'Brien's 66 assists tied Logan Morrison for 2nd in a single season by a Bulldogs, behind only Patrick Thomas, while his 162 points over his first two seasons are the most prolific first two by a Bulldog in franchise history.

In joining Seattle as the 8th overall selection, O'Brien now teams with the aforementioned Logan Morrison & former 8th overall OHL selection Ryan Winterton to round out a Bulldogs trio in the Pacific Northwest.

CHICAGO MAKES IT A WINDY CITY TRIO OF BULLDOGS WITH HOLMES

Speaking of trios with the 107th overall selection in the 4th round the Chicago Blackhawks rounded out a Bulldogs trio of their own, selecting the towering South Mountain, ON, native Parker Holmes.

Despite an upper body injury that cost him more than half of his rookie season the 6'4" 223lbs left shot winger flashed his potential showing soft hands for his size and the willingness to be a physical gamechanger on the forecheck.

Before taking on a bigger role in the 2025-26 season for the Bulldogs, Holmes will head to camp with Bulldogs teammates Nick Lardis & Marek Vanacker.

NEWEST BULLDOG JETS TO WINNIPEG

The newest Brantford Bulldog, Edison Engle, closed a busy weekend. Just a matter of hours following his official signing with the Bulldogs, the Winnipeg Jets selected the Arlington Heights, IL product in the 6th round with the 188th overall selection.

The 6'2" 175lbs left shot rearguard posted 2 goals and 15 assists for 17 points across 54 regular season games in Des Moines & Dubuque before posting 4 assists in 7 playoff games for the Fighting Saints. Engle's two-way proficiency from the blueline helped him earn a pair of opportunities to represent the United States at the international level, dawning the stars & stripes for both the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup & World Junior A Challenge, winning goal at the latter.

GONE CAMPIN' ... 10 BULLDOGS HEAD TO NHL DEVELOPMENT CAMPS

With the draft in the books the Bulldogs are sending 10 currently junior eligible players off to development camps over this week.

Chicago leads the way with the trio of Nick Lardis (3/67; 2023), Marek Vanacker (1/27; 2024) & Parker Holmes (4/107; 2025)

The Montreal Canadiens will welcome a draft selection, Owen Protz (4/102; 2024) and invitee Josh Avery who stands on the precipice of a breakout after recording 9 goals & 12 assists for 21 points in 53 games in his OHL rookie season.

Seattle will be excited to have Jake O'Brien (1/8; 2025) take his first reps as a member of the Kraken organization leading their 2025 NHL Draft class.

St. Louis will play host to the 3rd of the Bulldogs 1st round trio with Adam Jiricek (1/16; 2024) skating for the first time in at a development camp after injury cost him the opportunity a year ago. The Bulldogs top Import Draft selection in 2023 impressed in his rookie season, with 12 points from the blueline in 27 games while skating to a plus-10 rating.

The Buffalo Sabres will have Bulldogs starting netminder Ryerson Leenders (7/219; 2024) for his second development camp after his finest OHL season where the first year Bulldog posted 31 wins to go along with a 3.11 goals against average and sterling .910 save percentage.

Sam McCue (7/216; 2024) heads to his second development camp with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The newly acquired winger posted an impressive 36 goals in 55 games last year, including 18 in 20 games after a trade to Flint mid-season.

The Winnipeg Jets welcome the newest member of the Brantford Bulldogs in Edison Engle (6/188; 2025) following a strong season in the USHL split between Des Moines & Dubuque that included a World Junoir A Challenge Gold Medal.

Check out the Brantford Bulldogs Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from June 30, 2025


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