O’Shaughnessy Named Captain For 2024-2025 Season
By Caleb Herrera
On Friday, July 19, 2024, Patrick “Patty” O’Shaughnessy was announced as UNC Hockey’s Captain for the 2024-2025 season. Along with three Alternate Captains, he and the Tar Heels hope to replicate and excel beyond the successes of last season.
Originally from just outside Toronto, Canada, where hockey culture lives and breathes, O’Shaughnessy has been playing the sport since he was three years old and it is something he continued after his family moved to North Carolina. As expected, he is a Toronto Maple Leafs fan, idolizing players such as Phil Kessel and Auston Matthews. His love for hockey has never wavered, saying that the ‘connections you make with other people’ is his favorite aspect of it.
When describing the emotions that go into being named Captain, O’Shaughnessy talked about how good it feels to know that teammates look up to him and how his efforts this season will go into evolving as a leader on and off the ice to help keep the success of the program going.
“I’ve been on the team with a lot of these guys going on three years now. We’re continuing to build chemistry with the guys we have and we have a lot of good recruits coming in. Things are looking good for next year, so I’m really excited,” he said.
Entering his third year with UNC Hockey, O’Shaughnessy has shown that he can shine offensively, with his offensive feats including an ‘Ovechkin-esque’ no-look behind the back five hole highlight reel goal that gained recognition across hockey media in January of 2023.
With his team-leading 23 goals and tallying 37 points last season, the center describes his playing style as “well-rounded,” and its improvement over his time at UNC.
“Since being at UNC, I’ve definitely been more offensive than previous years,” he said. “Winning battles in both ends and trying to put the puck in now for sure.”
O’Shaughnessy is most excited for the matchups against NC State’s ‘Icepack Hockey,’ specifically describing the Governor’s cup as the game marked on the calendar all season long.
The Tar Heels finished the 2023-24 campaign with a 18-7-1 record, ranking seventh in the ACHA M2 Southeast Region. Because of a successful year, the team wants to avoid changing things too much, but instead “keep that momentum going and take it to the next level.”
That next level is the program’s move to the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division I in the 2025-26 season.
“Every year is trying to take another step forward and in the years I’ve been here, seeing how quickly the program has gotten bigger, it’s very surprising and it’s great to see,” O’Shaughnessy said. “We’ve just got to continue that growth and I feel we’re in a very good position to do that.”
O’Shaughnessy and the Tar Heels will take on Wake Forest Ice Hockey in the fall season home opener on August 31, 2024 at the Orange County Sportsplex. To purchase tickets to the home opener, CLICK HERE.
