Nicklas Jensen

Nicklas Jensen
Born	March 6, 1993 Herning, Denmark
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	186 lb (84 kg; 13 st 4 lb)
Position	Right Wing
Shoots	Left
NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams	New York Rangers Hartford Wolfpack (AHL) Herning IK AIK IF Vancouver Canucks
National team	Denmark
NHL Draft	29th overall, 2011 Vancouver Canucks
Playing career	2009–present

Nicklas Jensen (born March 6, 1993) is a Danish ice hockey winger. He is currently playing for the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

After beginning his career with Danish team Herning Blue Fox at the junior and men's level, Jensen moved to North America in 2010 to play with the Oshawa Generals. Named to the OHL All-Rookie Team following his first year with the club, he was ranked 21st among North American skaters eligible for the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, where he was selected by the Vancouver Canucks 29th overall. Jensen spent most of the 2012–13 season with AIK of the Swedish Elitserien before returning to North America and playing for Chicago, the AHL affiliate of the Canucks. Jensen made his NHL debut with Vancouver in 2013, and appeared in 24 games for the Canucks over three seasons, spending most of his time with the team's AHL affiliates, the Chicago Wolves and Utica Comets before being traded to the Rangers in 2016.

Representing Denmark internationally, Jensen has competed in Division I play of two IIHF World U18 Championships, winning Best Forward in 2010, and two IIHF World Junior Championships, helping his country to top spot in their pool in 2011.

Early life

Jensen was born in Herning, Denmark. His father, Dan, was born in Toronto and played in the Ontario Hockey League from 1986 to 1989 before moving to Denmark, where he met his wife. Jensen grew up while Dan played for the Herning Blue Fox, as well as the Danish national team. In addition to hockey, he played soccer, the country's national sport, until he was 14 years old.^[1] Despite arriving in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) as an import player, he lived in close proximity to many relatives, due to his father's Canadian heritage. Playing with the Oshawa Generals, his paternal grandparents Poul and Utta Jensen, as well as two uncles live in nearby Richmond Hill, Ontario.^[2]

Playing career

Following after his father, Jensen began his career with his hometown team, the Herning Blue Fox. Spending the majority of the 2008–09 season with the team's junior side, he recorded 43 points (28 goals and 15 assists) over 28 games. During the season, he also debuted at the men's level, recording three goals over four games with Herning's second-tier team. The following season, he was promoted to Herning's premier team in Denmark's top professional league, AL-Bank Ligaen. With 12 goals and 26 points over 34 games, he won the league's Rookie of the Year award.^[3]

After being selected eighth overall in the 2010 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft by the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)^[4] Jensen moved to North America to join the team for the 2010–11 season. Making his OHL debut on September 23, 2010,^[5] he scored the deciding goal in a 5–4 win against the Peterborough Petes.^[6] Several months into the campaign, he began a seven-game goal-scoring streak, scoring 10 times from December 3, 2010, to January 9, 2011; it tied for the third-longest streak in the league that season.^[7] Midway through the campaign, he was named OHL Player of the Week after recording seven points (three goals and four assists) over three games from January 10–16, 2011. His award-winning week included a five-point game (one goal and four assists) against the Ottawa 67's.^[8] That same month, he competed in the 2011 CHL Top Prospects Game for Team Cherry, alongside Generals teammates Boone Jenner and Lucas Lessio.^[9] Jensen completed his OHL rookie campaign with 58 points (29 goals and 29 assists) over 61 games. Ranking fifth in scoring among first-year players,^[10] he was named to the OHL Second All-Rookie Team. In the 2011 playoffs, he added 11 points (7 goals and 4 assists) over 10 games, ranking third among league rookies.^[11] His efforts helped the Generals to the second round, where they were eliminated in five games by the Niagara IceDogs.^[12]

The stage at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft after Jensen was selected by Vancouver.

Going into the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Jensen was ranked 21st among prospects playing in North America by NHL Central Scouting Bureau. He was selected 29th overall by the Vancouver Canucks. Following his draft, he characterized himself as "a power forward and goal scorer who protects the puck well", while the Canucks assistant general manager Laurence Gilman highlighted the quick release of his shot. Gilman also described him as a player high in "character and work ethic".^[1] In becoming a part of the Canucks organization, Jensen joined countryman Jannik Hansen, who led a wave of Danish players beginning to play in the NHL.^[13]

Following his NHL pre-season debut, Jensen signed a three-year, entry level contract with the Canucks on September 22, 2011.^[14] Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault praised Jensen's play in his training camp performance, but asserted that he still needs development to play in the NHL.^[15] By the end of the month, he was returned to the Generals to continue at the junior level.^[16] Playing his second OHL season, Jensen scored at a similar pace to his rookie year with 25 goals and 58 points over 57 games. He added five points in six playoff games.

After the Generals were eliminated in the first round of the 2012 OHL playoffs, Jensen was assigned to the Canucks' American Hockey League affiliate, the Chicago Wolves.^[17] He made his professional debut on April 6, 2012, against the Houston Aeros, before scoring his first professional goal two games later against Texas Stars goaltender Jack Campbell in a 5–2 loss.^[18][19] In the last game of the regular season later that month, he recorded a hat trick in a 4–2 win against the Peoria Rivermen on April 15, 2012.^[20] Playing the San Antonio Rampage in the first game of the 2012 playoffs, Jensen scored two goals in a 5–4 loss.^[21] His series was cut short when he suffered a concussion the following game after receiving an elbow to the head.^[22]

The Canucks assigned Jensen to AIK of the Elitserien, the top professional league in Sweden, for the 2012–13 season.^[23] Jensen scored 17 goals and 23 points in 50 games with AIK, leading the team in goals and tied for fourth with points. He also led all Elitserien rookies in goal scoring and was tied for eleventh overall.^[24] After the Elitserien season ended in early March, the Canucks assigned Jensen to the Chicago Wolves; he joined the team on March 8, 2013.^[24] Jensen played 11 games for Chicago scoring two goals and four points. After a series of injuries to the Canucks' line-up he was recalled in hopes of adding an offensive spark to the team.^[25] He made his National Hockey League (NHL) debut on April 1, 2013 in a game versus the San Jose Sharks.^[26] After Mason Raymond and Dale Weise returned from injury Jensen was reassigned to Chicago. He went pointless in two games.^[27]

Jensen scored his first NHL goal on March 14, 2014, against Jaroslav Halak of the Washington Capitals.^[28]

On January 8, 2016, while with AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets, Jensen was traded by the Canucks along with a 6th round draft pick in 2017 to the New York Rangers in exchange for forward Emerson Etem.^[29]

On April 20, 2016, Jensen was recalled by the New York Rangers from the team's AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. ^[30]

International play

Medal record
Representing  Denmark
Ice hockey
IIHF World U18 Championships
	2009 Italy	Division I Group B
	2010 Denmark	Division I Group A
World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
	2010 France	Division I Group A
	2011 Slovenia	Division I Group B

Although Jensen is a dual citizen of Denmark, where he was born and his father's family came from, and Canada, his father's birth country, he chose to play with the Danish national team.^[1][31] He debuted internationally for Denmark in Division I play of the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championship, held in Asiago, Italy.^{[notes 1]} At 16 years old, he was the youngest player on the team.^[32] He registered one assist over five games, helping Denmark to second place in their pool. They finished two points shy of first place, which would have qualified them for the main division the following year.^{[notes 2]}

Seven months later, Jensen joined Denmark's under-20 team, competing in Division I of the 2010 World Junior Championships, held in Megeve and Saint-Gervais, France. Once again the youngest player on the team,^[34] he tied for third among Danish players in scoring with five points (three goals and two assists) over five games, while recording a team-leading 19 shots on goal.^[35] Denmark finished second in Pool A, missing out on a promotion to the 2011 tournament's main division by one win.^{[notes 3]}

The following year, Jensen returned to the under-18 team for the 2010 IIHF World U18 Championships, which was held in his hometown of Herning, Denmark. In the first game of the tournament, he recorded five goals against France, leading Denmark to a 7–4 win.^[37] He was named his team's player of the game.^[38] In a later 13–3 win against Korea, Jensen recorded a hat trick, as well as one assist.^[39] Going undefeated after four games, Denmark played Norway (also undefeated) in the final contest of the tournament, with the winner deciding who would earn a promotion to the top division the following year.^[40] Jensen recorded a goal and an assist in the match, as Denmark lost 5–4.^[41] Finishing with a team-leading 15 points over 5 games, including a pool-leading 13 goals,^[42] Jensen was distinguished as Denmark's best player and the pool's best forward by the coaches and the directorate, respectively.^[43][44]

In December 2010, Jensen made his second appearance at the under-20 level in the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championships' Division I tournament, held in Slovenia. Recording two goals and five points over five games, as well as a team-leading 28 shots on goal,^[45] he helped Denmark to the top spot in their pool and a promotion to the top division for the 2012 tournament.^[46] Denmark had tied with Slovenia for first place in Pool B with four wins and one loss each,^[47] but won by virtue of having won their game against them 2–1.^[48]

Jensen made his third appearance for Denmark's under-20 team in the 2012 World Junior Championships. It was his first time competing in the top division of an international tournament (all his previous appearances had been in second-tier Division I play). Jensen was chosen to the team as the lone player competing with a North American club at the time (the Oshawa Generals)^[49] and was also named an alternate captain.^{[notes 4][50]} During the preliminary round, Jensen was named Denmark's player of the game after recording an assist and five shots on goal in a 10–2 loss to Canada.^[50] Denmark finished the tournament in last place, relegating them back to Division I for the 2013 World Juniors.^[51] Jensen led his team in scoring with two goals and six points over six games.^[52]

Following his 2011–12 season, in which he made his professional debut, Jensen was expected to have received an invite to the Danish national team for the 2012 IIHF World Championship, but he had sustained a concussion during the 2012 AHL playoffs.^[22] Jensen would make his debut at the World Championships in 2013, when he was added to Denmark's roster following the elimination of the Vancouver Canucks from the Stanley Cup playoffs. Jensen recorded two goals in three games at the tournament as Denmark finished in 12th place.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2008–09	Herning Blue Fox II	Den-2		4	3	0	3	0		—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Herning Blue Fox U20	Den-U20		28	28	15	43	30		2	1	0	1	0
2009–10	Herning Blue Fox	Den		34	12	14	26	28		10	6	4	10	8
2010–11	Oshawa Generals	OHL		61	29	29	58	42		10	7	4	11	2
2011–12	Oshawa Generals	OHL		57	25	33	58	29		6	1	4	5	0
2011–12	Chicago Wolves	AHL		6	4	0	4	6		2	2	0	2	0
2012–13	AIK	SEL		50	17	6	23	16		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Chicago Wolves	AHL		20	2	2	4	8		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Utica Comets	AHL		54	15	6	21	26		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		17	3	3	6	10		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Utica Comets	AHL		59	14	14	28	39		18	4	1	5	10
2014–15	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		5	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Utica Comets	AHL		27	4	8	12	20		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Hartford Wolf Pack	AHL		41	15	10	25	12		—	—	—	—	—
SHL totals				50	17	6	23	16		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				24	3	3	6	10		—	—	—	—	—

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2009	Denmark U18	WJC18 (Div I)		5	0	1	1	6
2010	Denmark U20	WJC (Div I)		5	3	2	5	2
2010	Denmark U18	WJC18 (Div I)		5	13	2	15	14
2011	Denmark U20	WJC (Div I)		5	2	3	5	10
2012	Denmark U20	WJC		6	2	4	6	4
2013	Denmark	WC		3	2	0	2	2
2014	Denmark	WC		7	1	1	2	8
Junior totals				20	18	8	26	32
Senior totals				10	3	1	4	10

Awards

Award	Year
AL-Bank Ligaen Rookie of the Year	2009–10
Best Forward – IIHF World U18 Division I (Pool A)	2010
Denmark's Best Player – IIHF World U18	2010
OHL All-Rookie Team	2010–11

Notes

1. Division I is the second-highest level of play in the tournament.
2. There are two pools who play separate round robins in Division I competition. The top-ranked team from each pool earns a promotion to the top division for the following year. Top-ranked Latvia won four games and lost one in regulation for 12 points. Denmark won three games, lost one in regulation and lost one in overtime for 10 points.^[33]
3. Top-ranked Germany went undefeated in five games, while Denmark lost one game.^[36]
4. He was one of two alternate captains with defenceman Mark Larsen, while Jannik Christensen was named captain.^[50]

References

1. Kuzma, Ben (2011-06-25). "Canucks hope they've found another great Dane in Jensen". The Province. Postmedia News. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
2. Sager, Neate (2010-10-29). "Draft tracker: 5 questions with Nicklas Jensen, Oshawa Generals". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
3. Kimelman, Adam (2011-02-11). "Danish prospect has Generals in contention". National Hockey League. Retrieved 2011-06-24.
4. "2010 CHL Import Draft". Canadian Hockey League. 2010. Retrieved 2011-06-24.
5. "Nicklas Jensen (RW) - Oshawa Generals - 2010-11 Regular Season Game By Game Stats". Ontario Hockey League. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
6. "Game Summary 16754". Ontario Hockey League. 2011-05-27. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
7. "2010-11 Regular Season Streaks - Goals". Ontario Hockey League. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
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9. Bell, Aaron. "Generals Prospects Stick Together". Ontario Hockey League. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
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12. "2010-11 OHL Playoff Results". Hockeydb.com. Retrieved 2011-08-25.
13. McIntyre, Gordon (2012-04-26). "Canucks: Jannik Hansen keeping an eye on Nicklas Jensen, next season". The Province. Vancouver. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
14. "Canucks sign top draft pick Nicklas Jensen". The Vancouver Sun. Postmedia News. 2011-09-22. Retrieved 2011-09-22.
15. Sekeres, Matthew (2011-09-26). "Nicklas Jensen is a keeper (just not this year)". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
16. White, Chris (2011-09-30). "Nicklas Jensen returns to Oshawa". Ottawa Generals. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
17. Chicago Wolves (2012-04-06). "Wolves Receive First-Round Pick Jensen from Canucks". ChicagoWolves.com. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
18. "Nicklas Jensen (RW) - Game By Game Stats 2011-12 Regular Season". American Hockey League. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
19. "Game Summary 1098". American Hockey League. 2012-04-10. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
20. LaTour, Paul (2012-04-15). "Jensen's hat trick lifts Wolves past Rivermen". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
21. "Wolves lose Game 1 to Rampage". ESPN Chicago. 2012-04-20. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
22. Ziemer, Brad (2012-05-01). "Only Canucks' Alex Burrows and Jannik Hansen sign on for international tournament". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
23. Kuzma, Ben (2012-08-29). "Canucks' Nicklas Jensen to suit up for AIK in Swedish Elite League". The Province. Vancouver. Retrieved 2012-09-14.
24. AHL (2013-03-08). "First-rounder Jensen joins Wolves". TheAHL.com. Retrieved 2013-03-09.
25. Ziemer, Brad (April 1, 2013). "Zack Kassian to Chicago, Nicklas Jensen to Vancouver as Canucks look to kick-start offence". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
26. "Canucks Game Day: Sedins to line up with top prospect Nicklas Jensen as Mason Raymond sidelined for Sharks test". The Vancouver Sun. April 1, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
27. Fung, Daniel (April 4, 2013). "Canucks Report: Raymond, Weise return". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
28. MacIntyre, Iain (March 14, 2014). "Canucks lose 4-3 after comeback comes up short in Washington". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
29. "Canucks acquire Etem for Jensen, pick". The Sports Network. 2016-01-08. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
30. "New York Rangers Recall Seven Players from Hartford Wolf Pack".
31. Manninen, Henrik (2011-12-26). "Denmark's next one". IIHF.com. Retrieved 2011-12-26.
32. "Entry List By Team - DEN" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2009-03-26. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
33. "Final Ranking" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
34. "Entry List By Team" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2009-12-14. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
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36. "Final Ranking" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2009-12-20. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
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38. "Best Players Per Game" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2010-04-18. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
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40. "2010 IIHF World U18 Championship Div. I Group A". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
41. "Game Summary" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2010-04-18. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
42. "Scoring Leaders" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2010-04-18. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
43. "Best Players of Each Team Selected By Coaches" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2010-04-18. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
44. "Best Players Selected By The Directorate" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
45. "Player Statistics By Team - DEN" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
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47. "Final Ranking" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
48. "2011 IIHF World U20 Championship Div. U Group B". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
49. Morreale, Mike G. (2011-12-07). "Canucks prospect to lead Denmark at WJC". Vancouver Canucks. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
50. "Game Summary" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2011-12-29. Retrieved 2011-12-29.
51. "Games & Summary". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
52. "Player Statistics By Team" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 2012-01-04. Retrieved 2012-01-05.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database