Stankoven hopes to be lineup regular for Dallas

In a lot of ways, Logan Stankoven’s career has been flying by at supersonic speed speed.

Drafted in the second round in 2021, the Stars forward became a pro player last season, was in line to win the AHL MVP, and is now one of the favorites to win the NHL Rookie of the Year this season. But as impressive as that is, Stankoven’s journey has had plenty of ups and downs.

After scoring five goals in his first six NHL games, Stankoven went on a 21-game goal slump that stretched into the playoffs and was particularly frustrating. But living with veteran Joe Pavelski and young friend Wyatt Johnston helped a great deal, and now as Stankoven faces a full-time job in the NHL, he said he has learned a lot.

“Last year, being able to live with Pav, and going through that streak where I hadn’t scored in a while, it was nice to be able to chat with him after games,” Stankoven said. “He’d tell me to stop gripping the stick and just let it flow.”

Those memories came back on Saturday when the Stars opened the exhibition season with a 2-1 win over the St. Louis Blues at American Airlines Center. Stankoven finished with nine shots on goal but was unable to score.

“We had our chances,” Stankoven said. “It would have been nice to bury one, but that’s okay.”

That said, the experience of playing with AHL linemate Mavrik Bourque was special and could portend great things this season. Stankoven finished with 24 goals among 57 points in 47 games while playing beside Bourque with the Texas Stars. Bourque, meanwhile, had 77 points in 71 games and won the league MVP. So, the fact the two were back on the ice again was pretty neat.

“Playing with Logan helps me a lot,” Stankoven said. “Playing with him last year was great, so you kind of know where he is.”

Bourque has played just one NHL game, so looking like a lineup regular this season is an amazing opportunity.

“It’s exciting for me,” he said. “I’ve got to grab it and seize it.”

The two said their chemistry is both natural and a product of hard work last season. Now, it seems easy to call up when they do get out on the ice.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Stankoven said. “I think we have that instant connection out there. I think we work well off each other. And see the ice very similarly.”

While Bourque added, “He’s just always moving, battling. When you move your feet, you are going to get chances.”

Now, the goal is to jump in and help the Stars, and coach Pete DeBoer said he expects that chemistry to carry over.

“He’s a really sharp kid, mature beyond his years,” DeBoer said of Stankoven. “I have zero concern that he’s going to apply everything he learned last year and have a great year.”

Dallas had several strong performances in the first exhibition game. Goalie Casey DeSmith, who is expected to back up Jake Oettinger this season, pitched a shutout through two periods and looked good doing so. Defensemen Matt Dumba, Lian Bichsel and Alexander Petrovic each showed some signs of physicality, and DeBoer said he liked that. And veteran players such as Colin Blackwell, Kyle Capobianco and Oskar Bäck each looked good.

“I thought the whole group was good,” DeBoer said. “St. Louis came and played a really hard, physical game. I thought a lot of guys had really good games.”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.