Winnipeg Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck Takes Unconventional High School Route to Olympic Stardom

Connor Hellebuyck, the Winnipeg Jets and Team USA goalie, rose from Michigan high school hockey to NHL MVP and Olympic standout. Discover his unique path to stardom.

Feb 18, 2026; Milan, Italy; Connor Hellebuyck (37) of the United States reacts before playing against Sweden in a men's ice hockey quarterfinal during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images / Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Winnipeg Jets and Team USA goalie Connor Hellebuyck has long been an NHL and international star, but what many people don’t realize is that he took the road less traveled to get where he is today. The Commerce, Michigan, product played his high school hockey at Walled Lake Northern High School, a path rarely taken.

Hardly any of Michigan's NHL players are coming from the high school hockey, as many of the state’s top prospects typically choose the AAA route instead, playing for top organizations with countless amount of future NHLers like Little Caesars and Honeybaked.

Hellebuyck has since developed into a star, winning a Hart Trophy, the NHL MVP, and three Vezina Trophy's for the NHLs top goalie.

Connor Hellebuyck's Career at Walled Lake Northern

In Hellebuyck’s senior season at Walled Lake Northern in 2011, he earned Second-Team All-State honors as one of the state’s top goaltenders. He posted a 93% save percentage, but the Knights only went 6-16-1 in his final year. The season ended with a 3-2 loss to Harland, a typical Michigan high school hockey powerhouse program. Less than ten years later, Hellebuyck won his first Vezina trophy.

Helleybuyck Kept Developing through the Amateur Ranks

From Walled Lake Northern, Hellebuyck was never touted as a blue-chip prospect. After he graduated, he went on to play for the Odessa Jackalopes in the NAHL, a league with plenty of talent but a second-tier junior hockey league.

After a strong year with Odessa posting a 2.49 goals against average, and a 93% save percentage, he was drafted in the 5th round of the NHL Draft by the Winnipeg Jets. Helleybuyck went on to play Division I hockey at UMass Lowell and posted a 94.1% save percenage winning him the inaugural Mike Richter Award for the top goalie in college hockey.

Team USA Will Lean on Hellebuyck Moving Forward

The star netminder has been off to a hot start in the Olympics with three wins in three stats for Team USA. Hellebuyck is allowing just 0.98 goals per game, and he owns a staggering 95.8% save percentage, numbers that have made him the standout player of the tournament so far leading all net minders.

Hellebuyck will need to stay on his game as Team USA takes on Slovakia on Friday in Italy in the semi-finals, leading to a potential rematch against Canada in the gold medal game, where America can avenge a loss to Canada in the Four Nations tournament last February.