TFTC: The black ace up Dallas' sleeve, Mavrik Bourque

A complete film mix of the other AHL point leader, and why it could matter to the Stars.

All your instincts are telling you that it can’t happen. “Okay, Wyatt Johnston is pretty cool but surely Logan Stankoven can’t be just as good? Okay Stankoven is pretty cool but surely Mavrik Bourque can’t be just as good?” Today is not necessarily about ‘‘well I’m here to tell you it can’ so much as ‘hey, decide for yourself.’

I’m talking about Bourque (who has 61 points in 53 games and is on pace for 84 total) because the trade deadline is almost over. It was an exciting deadline for some of the top teams, and in a way it was for Dallas too. Tanev was arguably the best defender on the market (I like him more than Hanifin even though I respect that Hanifin adds much more offense in a variety of ways). I would argue that said trade will bear more fruit in time, assuming Tanev is used next to a defender who can actually make plays with the puck and not just flip the killswitch on breakouts (Lindell has other strengths, but ever since he lost his PMD, his worst traits are on constant display.)

But there’s also the prospects Dallas has, and can continue to bring up if they truly wanted. Like an in-house deadline, Logan Stankoven wasn’t the only Cedar Park all-star tearing it up in the AHL. I’m not gonna sit here and hype Bourque like I did Stankoven; not because I’m waffling over my ultimate assessment (I’ve been clear), but because dedicated playmakers are inherently harder to integrate into a lineup. Plus Bourque is a natural center. Who would he replace? Even granting that Dallas can play him at right wing, every spot that has nothing to do with the 4th line is spoken for.

However, between potential injuries and Stankoven’s presence potentially adding some nu-car smell to the other AHL point leader, Bourque is ready.

I’m not writing this because I have insider info, and it’s entirely possible we never see Bourque this season. But if you have a stomach for best case scenarios on the trade deadline, surely you’ll have a stomach for the ultimate black ace.

Last weekend

Bourque has four points in his four games since losing his best bud. He’s doing just fine, which is all the more impressive given the fact that Texas doesn’t actually have much for him to work with. It’s not just about the lack of blue chip talent. It’s also about the lack of dynamism. Matej Blumel is a black and white shooting winger. Fredrik Karlstrom is a two-way pivot with some finish. Curtis McKenzie and Kyle MacDonald are less of the exact same profiles, just in reverse.

And yet Bourque is still able to lead the charge on his rush entries despite lacking footspeed. (Bourque is #22.)

Even though Bourque is not fast, he nonetheless finds ways to use speed in space — which is quite next level. Check out this move on the power play. It’s at the 0:09 mark.

He gets outside of the offensive zone to build speed coming back into the OZN. This may not seem like much to layfans; I’m, of course, one of them. I had to re-watch this a couple of times, not just to make sure that’s what happened but to make sure it was effective. Skip to 0:14 and check out the defenders. That speed has totally lured San Diego’s defenders into puck watching, opening up Blumel for the easy-access one timer. Think gravity assist. It’s a great example of a player without speed nonetheless leveraging speed.

I’ve talked a lot about Bourque’s wall work. And yes, I even clipped an entire one minute and forty-five second highlight reel of it below, but right now we’re talking about last weekend. Even with AHL-quality forwards, check out how Bourque makes great use of Kyle MacDonald in the high slot.

That’s a difficult pass. But Bourque is always keeping the play moving, so of course he makes himself an option on his own play and ends up attracting all kinds of defensive smoke.

Like Stankoven, Bourque is not big but plays big — just in a very different way. Where Stankoven uses muscle, Bourque flexes his mind. But he’ll sacrifice himself to go into the thunderdome too.

But you didn’t come here, and sacrifice your hard-earned breakfast taco money to watch a few AHL clips. You want to see for yourself what Bourque did all year to be mentioned in the same breath as Stankoven. Below are four different highlight reels of four elements that make his game very distinct — distinct enough to be an impact player: playmaking, rush attacks, wallwork, and shooting.

Then we’ll talk about why it’ll matter to Dallas should he make the jump.