Nicklas Jensen to Canucks

26 Jun 2011 | Henrik Lundqvist

Nicklas Jensen was the only Danish player to be selected in the 2011 NHL draft when Vancouver Canucks picked him as number 29 overall.

It was no surprise that Nicklas Jensen was selected in the first round, as the rankings prior to the draft predicted that.

"I was ranked between 20 and 25 and when they got past number 25 I got a little nervous", says Jensen to tv2sport.dk. "But suddenly they called out my name and I got happier than I’ve ever been before".

The Vancouver Canucks, who lost in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals, chose him as the 29th player overall. Only two Danish players have been picked earlier. Mikkel Bødker was selected 8th in the 2008 draft and Lars Eller was the 13th pick 2007.

The native of Herning is already familiar with playing hockey in Canada. He had a big rookie season with the Oshawa Generals in the OHL after he was selected in the 1st round of the 2010 CHL Import Draft. The winger scored an impressive 29 goals and 29 assists for 58 points in 61 games during the regular season and continued with 7 goals and 4 assists in 10 playoff games.

The 2009-10 season he played for Herning Bluefox in the Danish top league and scored 12 goals and 14 assists in 34 games. He was also named Rookie of the Year.

Jensen may now be team-mate with another Danish player – Jannik Hansen just finished his fifth season in the Canucks organization.

Vancouver’s General Manager Mike Gillis was happy with the pick: "He has a fantastic opportunity to be a power forward. He can score goals, he has a good size and good speed, and it was exactly what we were looking for".

The Canucks who also picked Alex Grenier and Joseph Labate gets a lot more size and power to their organization.