June 24, 2017
By Dan Colleran
CHICAGO — Future University of Notre Dame defensemen Nick Leivermann and Matt Hellickson were selected in the seventh round of the 2017 NHL Draft at Chicago’s United Center. Leivermann was drafted 187th overall by the Colorado Avalanche, while Hellickson was selected with the 214th overall pick by the New Jersey Devils.
Leivermann and Hellickson become the 80th and 81st Irish players selected in the NHL Entry Draft. At least one current or future Notre Dame player has now been selected in each NHL draft dating back to 2004.
HELLICKSON
Hellickson, an incoming Notre Dame freshman for the 2017-18 season, skated in 52 games with the Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) in 2016-2017. He was named an alternate captain for the Musketeers after having been selected first overall in the 2016 USHL Entry Draft. In the 2016-17 regular season, he scored six goals and recorded 22 assists for a total of 28 points, which ranked ninth overall among USHL defensemen. He twice earned USHL Defenseman of the Week honors in 2016-17 and helped lead Sioux City to the Clark Cup Final.
A 6-0, 176-pound native of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, Hellickson won a bronze medal at the 2016 Under-18 World Junior Championships with Team USA. He also contributed two assists in four games to help Team USA to a first-place finish at the Under-18 Four Nations Tournament in Monthey, Switzerland in 2015. In 2015-16, he skated with the USNTDP.
Congrats to incoming freshman Matt Hellickson, who’s been selected by @NJDevils in the @NHL Draft! pic.twitter.com/aKAd1sUUtg
— Notre Dame Hockey (@NDHockey) June 24, 2017
LEIVERMANN
As a senior in 2016-17, Leivermann skated in 21 regular-season games for Eden Prairie High School where he co-captained his team and notched points 34 points on 10 goals and 24 assists. He added a goal and two assists in the playoffs and helped Eden Prairie to the semifinal of Minnesota’s Class AA state tournament. He scored the third period, game-winning goal against Wayzata in a state quarterfinal game at the Xcel Energy Center.
Leivermann was named to the 2016-2017 United States High School Third Team All-USA Hockey and was ranked 119th among North American skaters in the NHL Central Scouting ratings. In 112 career games with Eden Prairie, the defenseman scored 36 goals and added 73 assists for 109 points.
A 5-10, 170-pound native of Eden Prairie, Minnesota, Leivermann will play with the Pentiction Vees for the 2017-2018 season in the British Columbia Hockey League before joining the Irish.
Congrats to Irish commit Nick Leivermann who’s been selected by @Avalanche in the @NHL Draft! pic.twitter.com/cQPs4Y9k3R
— Notre Dame Hockey (@NDHockey) June 24, 2017
— ND —
Dan Colleran, associate athletics communications director at the University of Notre Dame, has been a part of Fighting Irish Media since August 2015 and coordinates all media and publicity efforts surrounding the Notre Dame hockey and golf programs. A native of Walpole, Massachusetts, Colleran spent the previous three years working with the men’s hockey and soccer programs at Providence College. Colleran also spent two years as an Assistant Executive Director of Communications & Championships at the Ivy League and is a graduate of Providence College (’06 & ’08G).