Nobody comes out of nowhere to have an NHL career, especially one that includes winning a major trophy, but Hellebuyck was close.

After playing with Odessa of the North American Hockey League for the 2011-12 season, the Commerce Township, Michigan, native did not even crack NHL Central Scouting's list of the top 36 North American goalies eligible for the 2012 NHL Draft (he was selected by the Winnipeg Jets in the fifth round, No. 130). But four years later, after Hellebuyck made 26 starts as a rookie for the Jets in 2015-16, he was so well regarded that he was named to Team North America for the World Cup of Hockey 2016.

A crease-clogging presence at 6-foot-4 the self-described "big and boring" Hellebuyck plays a steady game based on seeing the puck, limiting his movement and trying to be in the right position. The approach worked wonders for Hellebuyck when Winnipeg called him up from the American Hockey League following an injury to Ondrej Pavelec.

Hellebuyck won his NHL debut on Nov. 27, 2015, against the Minnesota Wild, the first of three straight wins (he allowed one goal in each game). He got his first NHL shutout on Dec. 27, 2015, making 30 saves against the eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite leading Jets goalies with a .918 save percentage and 2.34 goals-against average, Hellebuyck was sent back to the AHL in February when Pavelec was again healthy.

Even so, Hellebuyck finished the season tied for the team lead with 13 wins. Among rookie goalies who played in at least 10 games in 2015-16, Hellebuyck was fourth with a 2.34 GAA, tied for fifth with a .918 save percentage and tied for second with two shutouts.

Hellebuyck had a breakout season in 2018-19 tying for the NHL lead with 44 wins and helping the Jets advance to the Western Conference Final. He was named an NHL Second-Team All-Star and earned his first trip to the NHL All-Star Game. His second came in 2020, when he was also voted winner of the Vezina Trophy as the League's best goalie.

In 2022-23, Hellebuyck went 37-25-2 with a 2.49 GAA, .920 save percentage and four shutouts in 64 games. He faced the third-most shots (1,964) and made the second-most saves (1,807), had six games with at least 40 saves (5-0-1) and was a Vezina finalist for the third time. He signed a seven-year, $59.5 million contract with the Jets on Oct. 9, 2023.

Hellebuyck became a four-time Vezina finalist when he was nominated for the 2023-24 season and then voted winner for the second time. He teamed with Laurent Brossoit to win the William M. Jennings Trophy, presented annually to the goalies who play a minimum of 25 games for the team allowing the fewest goals during the regular season. Winnipeg allowed 199 goals including the shootout (2.43 per game).

He set a Jets/Atlanta Thrashers record with a shutout streak of 191:47 during a 4-1 win against the Dallas Stars at Canada Life Centre on Nov. 9, which broke the mark of 187:05 set by Pavelec in 2014-15, and started the 2024-25 season 20-5-1, becoming the fastest United States-born goalie to win 20 games in a season in NHL history (26 games). The mark was previously held by Frank Brimsek (27 games in 1938-39).

Hellebuyck's 26 saves in a 5-2 win against the Nashville Predators at Canada Life Centre on Jan. 7, 2025, was his 300th in the NHL. He became the fastest United States-born goaltender in NHL history to reach the milestone, and the League's third-fastest overall (538 games) behind Andrei Vasilevskiy (490 on Nov. 14, 2024) and Jacques Plante (521 on Dec. 25, 1962).

Hellebuyck played for the runner-up United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off and won gold with Team USA at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, the country's first in men's Olympic hockey since the 1980 Lake Placid Games. His 41 saves, including a breakaway on Connor McDavid in the second period and a desperation stick save against Devon Toews in the opening minutes of the third, capped a performance that earned him best goaltender of the tournament. Hellebuyck broke Ryan Miller's record for saves (36 at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics) in a gold-medal game with NHL players and finished 5-0-0-0 with a 1.18 goals-against average and .956 save percentage.

He won the 2025 William M. Jennings Trophy, presented annually to the goalies who play a minimum of 25 games for the team allowing the fewest goals during the regular season, for the second straight year. The 2024-25 Jets gave up 191 goals (including shootout-deciding goals) en route to winning the Presidents' Trophy given to the team with the best regular-season record.

That season made Hellebuyck winner of the Hart Trophy voted as NHL most valuable player and a Vezina winner for the third time. He led the League with 47 wins and finished first in GAA (2.00) and second in save percentage (.925) among goalies to play at least 25 games. His eight shutouts ranked first, and he allowed two or fewer goals 40 times and one or fewer 27 times. Hellebuyck was the first goalie voted a Hart finalist since Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers in 2021-22, and the fourth goalie in the expansion era (since 1967-68) to win the award, following Dominik Hasek (1996-97 and 1997-98 for the Buffalo Sabres), Jose Theodore (2001-02 for the Montreal Canadiens) and Carey Price (2014-15 with the Canadiens).

Before joining the Jets, Hellebuyck had two superb seasons at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, allowing 84 goals in 53 games while helping his team win consecutive Hockey East championships. He won the inaugural Mike Richter Award as the top goalie in NCAA Division I in 2014.