The undersized forward willed Carolina back to life, outmuscling defenders to ignite a stunning third-period rally. Along the way, he's etched his name alongside franchise legends with a milestone postseason goal.
Logan Stankoven is one of the smallest players in the National Hockey League, listed at a generous 5-foot-8.
But hockey isn't measured by height, it's measured by your ability to produce and your heart and Stankoven's impact and drive has been immeasurable for the Carolina Hurricanes.
"Can't measure that stuff," said Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour. "He just keeps doing it. Night in, night out. Determination, all that stuff. It's pretty amazing."
Stankoven has been delivering all postseason for the Hurricanes, leading the team in goals since the start of the playoffs, and Thursday he was there once again, providing the spark the Canes needed for their wild third-period comeback.
For 50 minutes in Game 2, the Hurricanes looked lost, unable to break through Vegas' defense, but the Kamloops native put the team on his back.
Despite losing an offensive-zone draw, Stankoven beelined straight at Vegas blueliner Rasmus Andersson behind the net, and forced the 6-foot-1, 214lb defender off of the puck.
From there, he took it to the net and got a fortunate bounce in past Carter Hart.
"Somebody had to step up," Brind'Amour said. "Somebody had to make a play and that's what happened. Stanks made a play and all of a sudden you get the building going again."
"That was huge. 2-0 in the third period, we needed someone to step up and get us going and he had a great individual effort on that," said Mark Jankowski. "Not the biggest guy, but he has the biggest heart. He had a huge one-on-one battle there getting to the net and just getting a greasy goal. That got us going for sure."
That goal was the spark the team needed as just minutes later they wound up tying the game off of a Jankowski shot and then they found a way to get it done in overtime.
But it's clear that they don't win that game if not for Stankoven's individual effort.
"I think it was just great to get the crowd back into it," Stankoven said. "I think when you're down and out, I think you just have to rely on hard work and being able to hound pucks. I just tried to hop off the draw there and take it to the net. Kind of got a bit lucky it ramped up his stick. I saw it go in and I was pretty excited."
That goal was also Stankoven's 10th of the postseason, making him just the third player in franchise history to reach double-digit goals in a single postseason.
He's now just two goals from tying the record set by Brind'Amour himself in the 2006 Stanley Cup run.
Recent Articles
Stay updated with the most interesting Carolina Hurricanes stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.