Jens Hellgren

Playing career

Jens Hellgren first laced up his skates for his hometown club, Björbo IF, before moving to Leksands IF's junior system in 2003. Two years later, he represented Dalarna at the TV-pucken tournament and relocated to Gothenburg to join Frölunda HC's junior ranks. As a 16-year-old in his debut season with Frölunda, he suited up for 22 regular-season games in the J20 SuperElit and six playoff contests, helping the team claim a silver medal in the Swedish Junior Championship finals. The following year, he played 40 games, notching four goals and ten points, and went scoreless in seven playoff appearances as Frölunda captured the Swedish Junior Championship. His performance earned him a spot on Sweden's roster for the 2007 IIHF World U18 Championships, where he helped the squad take home a bronze medal. That success prompted the Colorado Avalanche to pick him 155th overall in the sixth round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

During the 2007–08 season, Hellgren again appeared in 40 games, improving his output to four goals and 14 points, and added one assist in eight playoff contests as Frölunda won its second straight Swedish Junior Championship. For the 2008–09 campaign, he was assigned to Borås HC, Frölunda's affiliate in the HockeyAllsvenskan, where he played his first senior hockey. In 45 games, he scored two goals and eight points, and also suited up for four games with Sweden's U20 team, recording one goal and four points. Borås missed the playoffs, and Hellgren signed a one-year deal to stay with the club for 2009–10. In his second season there, he played 50 games, scoring two game-winning goals and one assist while racking up 75 penalty minutes. Borås again failed to reach the postseason, and he inked a one-year extension. The 2010–11 season started well, but a concussion derailed his momentum; after returning, he never regained his earlier form, finishing with one goal and seven points in 41 games.

Following that season, Hellgren signed a two-year contract with Mora IK. In his second year with Mora, he was deployed primarily as a stay-at-home defenseman and managed only three assists in 47 games. On March 25, 2013, he left Mora and Sweden to sign a one-year contract with Sparta Sarpsborg of Norway's GET-ligaen. In his lone season with Sarpsborg in 2013–14, he contributed nine goals and 23 points in 41 games.