Yardley Resident To Play In Olympic Hockey Match

YARDLEY, PA — A Yardley Borough native will have the honor of playing in the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing as a member of the USA Hockey team this weekend.

Brian O'Neill, 33, will be playing as a forward for the American ice hockey team. This will be his second time playing ice hockey in the Olympics, his first time being at the Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang in 2018.

O'Neill, a Germantown Academy graduate who later went on to study at Yale, was signed by the Los Angeles Kings in 2012. His other career highlights include being a 2009 NCAA ECAC Champion as well as a 2015 Calder Cup Champion.

According to a video interview O'Neill did for USA Hockey's official YouTube page, O'Neill was influenced to begin playing hockey as a child by seeing footage of the '74-'75 Philadelphia Flyers.

"That team inspired my dad so much that he decided to enroll my twin brother and I in ice hockey, and we fell in love with it right away," O'Neill said in the video interview.

"Being [an] Olympian is all about representing my country," O'Neill continued. "That's something that I take tremendous pride in, something that I will carry with me the rest of my life."

Yardley Borough Mayor Chris Harding took to social media to cheer on O'Neill and the rest of the American hockey team as they head into their big game this weekend.

"Please join me in cheering on Yardley Boro resident Brian O'Neill when he takes the ice this weekend as USA Hockey gears up for their Men's Hockey schedule in the 2022 Olympic Winter Games," the Mayor said in a Facebook post. "Good luck to Brian and all of our #TeamUSA athletes as they reach for their dreams!"