College Sports

Connor Hellebuyck’s journey to NHL stardom was formed at UMass Lowell

He was about 90 minutes from playing in the biggest game of his life. But if Connor Hellebuyck was nervous, he was doing a fantastic job of hiding it. It was March 29, 2012 and UMass Lowell was set to face perennial national power Wisconsin in an NCAA Tournament hockey game at the Verizon Wireless […]

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He was about 90 minutes from playing in the biggest game of his life.

But if Connor Hellebuyck was nervous, he was doing a fantastic job of hiding it.

It was March 29, 2012 and UMass Lowell was set to face perennial national power Wisconsin in an NCAA Tournament hockey game at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H.

The sun was shining and the 4:30 p.m. puck drop was approaching. Some 50 feet outside the arena, a group of River Hawk players, 8-10 or so, enjoyed a beautiful late afternoon day.

Positioned in a circle, the players took turns heading a soccer ball and trying to keep the ball from hitting the ground. They were laughing and right in the middle of the action was a smiling Hellebuyck.

When the game started, the unheralded freshman goaltender stymied the Badgers before a crowd of 8,049. By game’s end, the scoreboard read UMass Lowell 6, Wisconsin 1, and Hellebuyck had calmly turned aside 31 shots. The only shot that sailed past him came on a Wisconsin power play.

The next night, a larger crowd turned out. The majority of fans were supporting the University of New Hampshire. The Wildcat fans made plenty of noise, but Hellebuyck was unbeatable, turning aside 28 shots to pace UML to a 2-0 win and leading the River Hawks to their lone Frozen Four appearance in Pittsburgh.

UMass Lowell's Connor Hellebuyck, left, celebrates with teammates Jake Suter, Doug Carr (31) and Michael Kapla (3) after the team defeated New Hampshire 4-0 in the Hockey East championship game in Boston on Saturday, March 22, 2014. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
UMass Lowell’s Connor Hellebuyck, left, celebrates with teammates Jake Suter, Doug Carr (31) and Michael Kapla (3) after the team defeated New Hampshire 4-0 in the Hockey East championship game in Boston on Saturday, March 22, 2014. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

On Thursday, now a seasoned professional, Hellebuyck learned he had been named the winner of the Hart Trophy as the MVP of the National Hockey League. Everyone who follows hockey knew he was a lock to win his third Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender.

But MVP? The best player in hockey? Wow, that’s heady stuff and quite the journey for Hellebuyck, who wasn’t a blue chip recruit when he committed to Norm Bazin and UMass Lowell.

Just a few seasons earlier, Bazin had inherited a program on thin ice. The River Hawks were coming off a nightmarish five-win season.

Hellebuyck produced two fantastic seasons at UML before turning pro and joining the Winnipeg Jets, the team that had drafted him.

As a UML freshman, Hellebuyck played in 24 games. He compiled a 20-3-0 record and posted eye-popping numbers of 1.37 (goals against average) and .952 (save percentage) and came within a bounce of the puck of leading UML to the national championship game.

In Pittsburgh, playing in the national semifinal, UML was outshot 47-18 by Yale, but Hellebuyck gave his team a chance, allowing the River Hawks to overcome a 2-0 deficit and force overtime. In OT, Yale pocketed the winner.

As a sophomore, Hellebuyck was again otherworldly, leading the River Hawks to the regional final and recording a 1.78 goals against average and .941 save percentage. He became the first recipient of the Mike Richter Award as the NCAA’s top goaltender. Somehow, however, he wasn’t even a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.

UMass Lowell goalie Connor Hellebuyck blocks a shot during the third period of an NCAA Final Four college hockey game against Yale in Pittsburgh on Thursday, April 11, 2013. (AP Photo/Gene Puskar)

Hellebuyck opted to turn after his sophomore season. He continued his strong play in the American Hockey League and his success continued when he was called up the NHL by Winnipeg.

Winnipeg isn’t a destination for NHL stars. In fact, free agents rarely even contemplate playing there. But Hellebuyck is the major reason the Jets have been a more than respectable franchise and this season Hellebuyck guided the team to the most points in the league during the regular season.

In being named the Hart Trophy and Vezina Trophy winner, Hellebuyck became a rare double winner. Goaltender is often described as the most important position in hockey, but rarely is a netminder a Hart finalist, never mind a winner.

To win the Hart Trophy this season, Hellebuyck beat out high-scoring forwards Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton) and Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay), the other finalists. Offense sells and people love to see the likes of Draisaitl fill up nets with pucks.

Draisaitl and Kucherov will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame when their careers are over. They’re likely to be joined by a 6-foot-4 goaltender from Commerce, Mich., who accepted a scholarship offer from UMass Lowell when few schools were knocking down his door.

Draisaitl was drafted third overall. Kucherov was selected in the second round. They were supposed to be stars.

Hellebuyck? He was taken in the sixth round (130th overall) by Winnipeg in 2012. Hellebuyck had to grind away in the minors and prove himself before he was given a chance to play in the world’s best league.

The most valuable player in the planet’s best hockey league for the 2024-25 season was developed at UMass Lowell.

Think about the NHL’s top stars. Connor McDavid. Draisaitl. Kucherov. Nathan MacKinnon. Cale Makar. Sidney Crosby. Just to name a few. That’s a staggering amount of talent. And they were beaten out for the NHL’s top individual award by a guy who wasn’t guaranteed to play in college at the Division 1 level.

Pretty cool story.



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