The Dallas Stars briefly recalled Logan Stankoven from AHL Texas, but his NHL debut will have to wait. Jacob Stoller says the AHL's top scorer is worth the hype, and his stats and fearlessness suggest the same. Who let the stank out?
Update: The Dallas Stars loaned Logan Stankoven back to the AHL's Texas Stars on the same day they recalled him, as Matt Duchene was available to play for Tuesday's game against the New York Rangers. The original column follows, because when Stankoven does make his NHL debut, it will be worth the wait: If you think the Dallas Stars couldn’t get any better — think again. The Stars recalled Logan Stankoven from the AHL on Tuesday in a move that signifies much more than just an injury replacement for Matt Duchene. Stankoven, 20, isn’t just the top forward prospect in the AHL — he’s arguably the best forward in the league, period. It’s not a stretch to suggest that if Stankoven weren’t stuck behind one of the NHL's deepest teams up front in Dallas, he’d probably be an NHL regular for most organisations. At the very least, he would've received a call-up much sooner than now. Logan Stankoven is the real deal, folks. For starters, the 5-foot-8 forward is leading the AHL in scoring — as a rookie, no less — with 57 points in 46 games. His resume only gets shinier when you peel back the onion layers, as Stankoven has the highest game score statistic per 60 minutes of any AHL forward (1.42), according to data via InStat. (Game score, a model developed by Dom Luszczyszyn, takes into account a variety of statistics to measure productivity in any given game.) Here’s Stankoven's player card with the percentile in which he ranks in the AHL: To put Stankoven's production into perspective, his 0.54 primary points per game at 5-on-5 rank second among all U-21 AHL forwards from the past decade who played a minimum of 20 games in a season, according to AHLTracker.com.
Draughted 47th over all by the Stars in 2021, Stankoven fell out of the first round due to concerns about his size. His rookie production has silenced those who discounted him. In an interview with The Hockey News for a story on Stankoven in the latest Rookie Issue magazine, Stars GM Jim Nill explained how giddy the Stars were to land Stankoven in the second round. After the first round ended, Nill said Stankoven was their target. They even tried trading up to grab him, as they feared he’d be snatched up before their pick. Stankoven doesn’t fit into the mould of your typical undersized junior. His raw skills — highlighted by his smooth edgework and puck skills — are unquestionably tantalising, but there’s also an element of fearlessness to his game that’s palpable. He’s a workhorse competitor, one that not only isn’t afraid of 1-on-1 battles, but he actually excels at them and creates a high volume of chances from the slot. The Stars tend to overripen their prospects — a prime example of which is paying dividends this year in Thomas Harley. In many ways, having Stankoven be the guy in Texas is a blessing in disguise. But as you’ll see soon — there’s no doubt he’s an NHL-calibre player. His future is tremendously bright; no Stars puns intended.
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