Jannik Hansen

Jannik Hansen (15 March 1986) is a Danish former professional ice hockey right winger. Hansen began playing professionally at the age of 16 with both the Rødovre Mighty Bulls of the Danish league and the Malmö Redhawks of the Swedish J20 SuperElit and HockeyAllsvenskan leagues. He played three seasons with Rødovre, during which time he was selected 287th overall by the Canucks in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. A year after his selection, he moved to North America to play major junior hockey with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League (WHL) for one season. In 2006–07, Hansen began playing with the Canucks\' minor league affiliate, the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League (AHL). That season, he was called up by the Vancouver Canucks and became the first Danish citizen to play and register a point in an NHL playoff game. After another campaign spent primarily with Manitoba, Hansen earned a full-time roster spot with the Canucks.\n', ' Internationally, Hansen has competed for the Danish national team in four World Championships. At the junior level, he represented Denmark in both Division I and main tournament play at the IIHF World U18 and U20 Championships.\n', ' Hansen was born in Rødovre and raised in Rødovre, Denmark, a suburb of Copenhagen. His father, Bent Hansen, was a carpenter and a member of the Danish national hockey team. Guided by his father, Hansen began skating at the age of two, but did not begin playing hockey until age 11. Growing up, hockey attracted a low-profile in Denmark (football is the country\'s national sport). At the time, no Dane had ever played in the NHL. Hansen has recalled neither he or any of his peers ever having any realistic aspiration to make the NHL, describing "Everyone grew up wanting to play in Sweden, or Germany, or Finland" instead.\n', '