#19 Wes O'Neill Hockey Roster

• O’Neill’s Career Statistics
• O’Neill’s Career Bests

One of the top defenseman in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) … will be in the running for all-CCHA and All-America honors in his senior season with the Irish … selected as an alternate captain for 2006-07 season … three-time monogram winner at Notre Dame … offensive-minded defenseman who saw his entire all-around game come together during the 2005-06 campaign … teams with fellow seniors Noah Babin and Tom Sawatske to give the Irish a veteran trio on the blue line … big, mobile defenseman with outstanding offensive skills … hard-working player who takes care of both ends of the ice … continues to improve all aspects of his game … led all Notre Dame defensemen in scoring and was fourth on the team with six goals and 19 assists for 25 points … was seventh in the CCHA among defensemen and 19th nationally … winner of the William Donald Nyrop Award as the team’s top defensive player as a junior … had career highs in assists and points … has played in 112-of-113 games in his career with 14 goals and 43 assists for 57 career points … has proven to be a power-play specialist with 10 goals and 23 assists coming via the power play in his first three seasons … capped his freshman year by being selected in the fourth round of the NHL Entry Draft, 115th overall, by the New York Islanders … went into the draft ranked 19th overall among North Americans (third among college players) by Central Scouting … was lone collegian selected to attend Canada’s National Junior Team Development Camp Aug. 12-19, 2004, in Calgary, Alb. … one of the top junior hockey players ever to choose to attend Notre Dame … is one of four former Green Bay Gamblers (USHL) on Irish roster … joins senior Noah Babin, sophomore Dan VeNard and freshman Kevin Deeth as former Gamblers … was a teammate of Babin and VeNard in his one season in Green Bay … one of 19 former USHL players playing at Notre Dame … one of three Canadians playing for the Irish, joining senior David Brown (Stoney Creek, Ont.) and junior Brock Sheahan (Lethbidge, Alb.) … member of eight-man recruiting class of 2003 that included five forwards, two defensemen and one goaltender … signed national letter-of-intent in early-signing period (Nov. `02) along with Babin, Brown, Josh Sciba and Jason Paige.

AS A JUNIOR: Came into his own as an all-around defenseman, combining solid defensive skills with his excellent offensive talents … saw action in 35 games with six goals and career highs in assists (19) and points (25) … had four power-play goals and 13 assists with the man advantage … picked up 20 penalties for 40 minutes … scored a game-winning goal versus Western Michigan … had 54 shots on goal to rank seventh on team and second among Irish defensemen (Babin led with 66) … was selected as the William Donald Nyrop Award winner as the team’s top defensive player … had seven games with two or more points, giving him 12 for his career … first came at the University of Denver where he had a goal and an assist in a 6-3 loss on Oct. 22 … helped set up a Mark Van Guilder power-play goal in 2-0 win over Princeton on Oct. 29 … had assists in both games of a weekend sweep versus Bowling Green (Nov. 10-11) … ran scoring streak to three games (0g, 4a) with two assists in 2-2 tie at Miami … held scoreless in four straight games before starting another three-game streak (1g, 5a) with a goal and an assist in 3-0 shutout versus Western Michigan on Dec. 3 … second-period power-play goal was game winner … followed with a career-high three-assist and three-point game versus Minnesota State on Dec. 6 … set up all three goals in a 3-2 win, including Erik Condra’s game winner with nine seconds left … closed streak with one assist in 2-1 loss to the Mavericks at the Joyce Center … scored third goal of the season (all ppgs) in 2-2 tie at Nebraska-Omaha on Jan. 7 … picked up fourth power-play goal of the year in 3-2 loss at Miami on Jan. 14 … went four games without a point before starting a six-game point streak (2g, 7a) on Feb. 4 at Michigan State … assisted on lone Irish goal in 2-1 loss to the Spartans … scored fifth goal of the season and added an assist in 4-1 win over Ferris State on Feb. 10, then assisted on a Josh Sciba power-play goal in 3-2 win at Ferris on Feb. 11 for three-point (1g, 2a) weekend … had a second three-point weekend (1g, 2a) in a win and tie at Bowling Green … had a goal and an assist in 7-4 win on Feb. 17 and then helped set up Sciba goal in 1-1 tie the following night … closed out streak with two assists in 4-1 win over Alaska Fairbanks on Feb. 24 … did not score in either game of CCHA playoffs versus the Nanooks.

AS A SOPHOMORE: Logged more than his share of ice time in 2004-05, seeing action in 38 games … finished second in team scoring with six goals and 14 assists for 20 points … led the Irish with five power-play goals and eight assists with the man advantage for a team-high 13 points … tied for team lead in goals (6, with Josh Sciba) … was second in assists (14), points (20) and shots on goal (73) … whistled off for 22 penalties resulting in 52 penalty minutes … selected team’s defensive player-of-the-year … started the season with a career-best three-game point streak as he recorded assists in both games of Minnesota-Duluth series and versus Miami in first game of that road series … played a major role in Notre Dame’s 3-2 upset of No. 1 Boston College on Oct. 22 … staked the Irish to a 1-0 lead with his first goal of the year on the power play at 5:32 of the first period … with Notre Dame killing a penalty in the final minute, stepped up in front of the Irish net to intercept a BC centering pass and found T.J. Jindra all alone at center ice … Jindra raced in to score the game winner with 15 seconds left … picked up an assist on lone Notre Dame goal in a 4-1 home loss to Northern Michigan … had first multiple goal game of his career versus Bowling Green on Nov. 5 in 4-4 tie … first goal of game gave Irish a 2-0 first-period lead and came on the power play … second goal came with Morgan Cey off for a sixth attacker and time running out … Chris Trick kept a Falcon clearing attempt in at the right point and slid a pass to O’Neill who was parked to the right of Jordan Sigalet … the big defender deflected the puck past Sigalet with three seconds left on the clock for the 4-4 tie … fourth goal of the season came a week later in 3-2 win at Western Michigan … did not score again until Michigan State series, Dec. 10-11 … third-period power-play goal tied game at 2-2 before Matt Amado scored game winner in overtime … assisted on lone Irish goal in 4-1 loss the following night … sixth goal of the season came in Jan. 14, 4-1 loss to Ohio State … picked up six assists over the final 16 games of the season, including a two-assist game versus Ferris State.

AS A FRESHMAN: Played in all 39 games for the Irish, scoring two goals with 10 assists for 12 points … scored one power-play goal … had 47 shots on goal for a .043 shooting percentage … led Notre Dame’s defense with a +7 for the year … CCHA all-rookie team honorable mention selection … scored first career goal and had first multiple-point game on Oct. 17 versus Bowling Green in 5-3 loss … set up Michael Bartlett’s second-period goal at 8:22 and then tied the game at 3-3 with his first goal at 15:30 of the middle stanza … second goal of the year came on Nov. 22 on the power play in a 2-2 tie with Lake Superior … had first two-assist game of his career on Dec. 5 in 8-6 loss at Western Michigan when he set up third-period goals by Josh Sciba and Cory McLean … had two assists in five postseason contests.

PREP & PERSONAL: Graduated from Ashwaubenon High School in Ashwaubenon, Wis. … attended Essex High School in Essex, Ont., for three years … played hockey, basketball and soccer at Essex … was team MVP in hockey and basketball in his junior year … selected male athlete of the year as a sophomore at Essex … played one season (2002-03) in the USHL with the Green Bay Gamblers … had two goals and 15 assists for 17 points with 74 penalty minutes … represented Green Bay in the USHL all-star game … was chosen with the second pick in the 2002 Ontario Hockey League draft but opted to play collegiate hockey and spent a year in Green Bay, where he graduated from high school … selected to play for Team Ontario at the Under-17 World Championships, played in Nova Scotia in February of 2003, collecting three goals and nine assists for 12 points in six games … in August of 2003, was selected to play for Team Canada at the Under-18 Select Championships in the Czech Republic … had a goal and four assists in five games while helping Canada finish fourth … played junior B hockey for the Chatham Maroons in 2001-02, collecting nine goals and 36 assists for 45 points in 51 games … full name is Wes Samuel O’Neill … son of Tim and Sandy O’Neill … has one sister … born March 3, 1986, in Windsor, Ont. … majoring in psychology with a minor in Peace Studies in the College of Arts and Letters.

O’Neill’s Career Statistics

O’Neill’s Career Bests
2 Points
vs. Minnesota State (0g-3a; 12/6/05)

2 Goals
vs. Bowling Green (11/5/04)

3 Assists
vs. Minnesota State (12/6/05),br>

5 Shots on Goal
vs. Alaska Fairbanks (3/3/06)
vs. Bowling Green (10/17/03)

6-Game Point Streak
(2g-7a); Feb. 4 – Feb. 25, 2006,br> (vs. Michigan State, Ferris State -2, Bowling Green – 2, Alaska)