The 2025 Patty Kazmaier winner in leading scorer in all of NCAA hockey will draw a lot of attention come draft day. O'Brien will be a first round pick at the 2025 PWHL Draft and is considered a candidate to slide into the top three.

Wisconsin head coach Mark Johnson called O'Brien "the best player in college hockey this year by far" as she led the nation finishing 16 points ahead of the second leading scorer, and 23 points ahead of any player not from Wisconsin. Her 88 points in 41 games helped O'Brien pass Hilary Knight as Wisconsin's all-time leading scorer this season.

O'Brien plays the game with pace and is willing to engage physically. In tight spaces, she protects the puck well and finds creative escapes. While O'Brien is a deft goal scorer, she'll excel the most in the PWHL as an elite playmaker. 

She sees the ice well and uses her feet to get to space, and find lanes. 

As a member of one of the PWHL's expansion or non-playoff teams, O'Brien will be an immediate offensive leader who can produce from day one. She plays the game like a pro and will certainly need to adapt to find new ways to produce with less time and space, but she has a unique toolkit that should allow that adaptation to take place quickly.

O'Brien is a good skater, who was one of the best in the face-off circle in the NCAA winning 61.3% of her draws this year. It highlights the diverse skill set O'Brien brings. While she's dominant on the power play, O'Brien was also relied upon this season to kill penalties for the Badgers, and play in all offensive and defensive situations. She'll be a jailbreak threat in the PWHL.