The trade from Dallas hurt Logan Stankoven, but the excitement in Carolina trumps it
Some players see it coming. Logan Stankoven was not one of them. When he was included in the blockbuster Deadline-Day trade that sent him to the Carolina Hurricanes and Mikko Rantanen to the Dallas Stars, it was quite a shock. Stankoven, 22, was in the midst of his first full NHL season after dominating the AHL and forcing his way to the Stars late last season. He thought he’d be a major part of Dallas’ long-term plans. It all changed March 7, and the past couple weeks have been a whirlwind for the Kamloops, B.C. native.
How is Stankoven adjusting to life with the Hurricanes? Is coach Rod Brind’Amour a dream fit for him? How hurt was he when Dallas traded him?
Stankoven caught up with Daily Faceoff this week to answer those questions and many more.
DAILY FACEOFF: First things first: did you think the trade was coming or was it a surprise?
LOGAN STANKOVEN: I was definitely pretty shocked. Leading up to the Deadline – I don’t know if you had seen or not, but our GM Jim Nill was pretty confident in his words, saying “Our young guys are kind of untouchable” and, “Not really gonna trade them or put them on the trading block.”
So hearing that, as a younger guy you feel pretty secure and safe, but that wasn’t the case. Hockey’s a business, and in his point of view, you’re trying to make the team as best as possible and you want to try and win the Stanley Cup. Winning is all that matters, right?
So I was definitely shocked by the trade, but I couldn’t be happier now being in Carolina, and it’s been great so far. I’ve really enjoyed myself.
DFO: I’m sure you’ve told variations of it, but for anyone who doesn’t know: how did you find out about the trade?
STANKOVEN: So we played Thursday at home against Calgary the night before the Trade Deadline. I was just about to go to bed, and I got a couple texts from a few buddies, asking me, “Hey, are you are you getting traded? What’s going on? Your name’s out there.”
And sure enough, I go on Twitter and my name’s out there. Right from then, that’s when I felt, hey, this could potentially happen. Fast forward to the next day, right around the end of the Trade Deadline was when I got the call making it official that the trade happened. [I got the call] from Jim Nill and then the head coach Peter DeBoer.
DFO: Once you see your name out there in trade talk…are you the kind of guy who’s refreshing his phone every five minutes at that point and struggling to sleep? Or do you block it out and say whatever happens, happens?
STANKOVEN: No, I was just constantly refreshing my phone. There’s so much going on, and you don’t know what to expect. So I was really nervous and anxious. I just wanted to get that day over with and get through that and figure out, “Am I going to stay in Dallas or be moving somewhere else? Like, what’s the plan?”
I just turned 22 a few weeks ago. So I’m still a young guy. I didn’t really know what to expect, and I was just starting to get comfortable with the guys in Dallas, and it’s still my rookie year. So I’m just trying to find my way in the league and hopefully solidify myself as a solid player, have a good career.
DFO: It’s one thing to be a player traded deep into his career when you’ve been somewhere for a long time. Obviously it was only your first full season in Dallas. But when you look at some of the other young guys – Mavrik Bourque for example, you were coming up together and rising at the same time. So is it hard to leave guys like that behind when you were starting something together?
STANKOVEN: Yeah, Bourque and even Wyatt Johnston, Lian Bichsel, Oskar Back. A lot of those guys you come through the organization with, and they become your best friends and good buddies that you’re always spending time with, going out for dinners on the road or out with them outside the rink. So yeah, it’s tough to leave them and you’re kind of starting fresh.
That’s the other hard part, why you’re so nervous at that time: if you do go to a new place, you don’t know what to expect. And I didn’t really know a whole lot of guys coming here to Carolina. But they’ve been super welcoming to me and have made me feel like I’ve been on the team for a few years now already. I’ve never really experienced this type of group before that’s so close and welcoming. I’ve really enjoyed everything so far.
DFO: Who with the Canes has been key for you in these first couple weeks from a welcoming or mentoring perspective?
STANKOVEN: There’s more than just one. As soon as the trade happened I had about six or seven guys text me and reach out to me saying, “We’re so excited to have you, can’t wait to meet you.” That made me feel a lot better as well.
Seth Jarvis, Sebastian Aho and Brent Burns, Jaccob Slavin, the older guys, Jordan Martinook, Jordan Staal, those guys have been really, really good to me. Everybody has, but those were the guys who reached out to me as soon as the trade happened and just acknowledged me and let me know how excited they were to have me.
DFO: You list off those names and, wow, what a great room of personalities. Seth Jarvis may be the funniest guy in the league. Once I was interviewing him right after a game and he just pulled out a piece of pizza mid-conversation at his stall. No idea where he got it.
STANKOVEN: I’m getting exposure to that too. He is a character, and other guys in the room are, too. All the guys are really funny, and it’s just an easy room to be in. They’re all very comfortable with each other, and they like to joke around. Hockey can be stressful at times, but when you have a group like that, it makes it a lot more fun, and I think it contributes to the way we play on the ice, too. It’s still early, I’ve only played a handful of games, but we’ve won all the games, and I feel like every game we’ve taken it to the other team. Everybody’s doing their job and working hard. Everyone’s accountable out there.
DFO: One of the immediate reactions upon hearing of the trade was “Oh my god, Logan Stankoven is a perfect Rod Brind’Amour player.” What has been your experience so far with ‘Rod the Bod?’ Has he been intimidating or has he fit like a glove as a coach for you?
STANKOVEN: I really like Rod. He shows how much he cares about the team. He’s passionate. He wants to win, super competitive. Personally I love the way we play. The style, it’s aggressive and you’re on your toes instead of sitting back. Even his speeches, he’s really motivating, and he’s an easy guy to go into the battle for. It’s been great getting to know him so far.
DFO: So the story came out that you had the huge group of roughly 500 family and friends who were going to attend the Stars-Canucks game on March 9. So they all still got together and watched your first game with Carolina at a bar and then went to the Canucks game?
STANKOVEN: Yeah, it was my first game. It was a Sunday, so we had a five o’clock game, which would have been a two o’clock start back out west. They all met at a place called the Sports Bar [in Rogers Arena]. A lot of people had made the trek down there. Sure enough, I ended up scoring, which is really exciting, and I saw a video of everyone cheering in the bar there, so that was really special.
DFO: Were you in the family group chat saying, “Sorry I’m not there?” Was it awkward knowing they all had tickets for a game you weren’t playing in anymore?
STANKOVEN: I’m sure next time Carolina goes to Vancouver, everyone will come down again as well. But my dad had helped set everything up. We have a family friend who works for Canucks in ticket sales, so he had helped my dad get a crap ton of tickets and organize everything, and it was planned way in advance. Obviously everything is kind of out of my control. Just disappointing, but I think everything happens for reason, and hopefully I can be successful here in Carolina.
DFO: The scouting reports on you over the years compared you to a pitbull because of the energy you bring in a relatively small fame. But in terms of how you see yourself, is there a certain player or player type you’ve always followed and tried to model your game after since you were young?
STANKOVEN: When I was younger, it’s just more your favorite players that you like to watch, like it was Sidney Crosby. But Mike Cammalleri when he played on Montreal, him being a smaller guy, really good shot, good one-timer, scored a lot of goals, it’s something I like to do as well. So I’d say those are the two guys. I think now it’s more Brayden Point that I like to watch.
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