The Other Stars: Logan Stankoven and Mavrik Bourque are about more than just offense
Report cards for a very special group of Dallas Stars prospects.
I didn't have any expectations going into this season for the Texas Stars. Nor did I see anything special. Yes, I was excited by the prospect of Logan Stankoven, Mavrik Bourque, and Lian Bichsel all on one team. But my interest was passing when it came to the broad strokes. I figured I'd catch some games, and clip some highlights to get Dallas fans pumped about their team's future and that would be that.
After all, Bourque would need to show that last season's slow start was exactly that while Stankoven and Bichsel would need to show they could handle pro North American hockey. Whatever the case, if they were gonna be successful, they’d be successful on their own. Boy was I wrong.
Texas is 5th in goals-scored, 1st in the division, and only have two regulation losses in their last 10 games. They own the top Power Play in the league. Why is that? Because Stankoven and Bourque have delivered. Both are top three in scoring. Bichsel has been more than just a shutdown defender, but a territorial problem solver. Matt Murray and Remi Poirier (Poirier less so) look like NHL-quality backups. But it's also the support. Antonio Stranges is looking exactly like the enigma he's been billed as, except he's been a productive enigma. Riley Damiani is having a bounceback year and Matej Blumel has been dangerous. The list goes on.
As for Stankoven and Bourque, well they both scored this weekend.
But this time I want to talk about something else. Stankoven and Bourque are not simply prospects developing skills. They are developing into the leaders on this team. It's why Texas is more than just a team with some fancy prospects, but a strong team that happens to have some fancy prospects. Stankoven and Bourque lead by example. I noted on Twitter that you could even detect a hint of gamesmanship: every time one of them is in danger of falling behind the other in AHL scoring, their totals are tied back up. It's what stands out to me more than just the raw talent, precisely because Bourque and Stankoven are not the most talented players. Stankoven is not the biggest and Bourque is not the fastest.
Stankoven & Bourque: (A strong) A+
Here's Bourque with some strong defensive positioning, anticipating the pass along the boards and immediately intercepting it.
Curtis McKenzie falls (tripped) and Colorado dumps it in. Guess who’s the first to win the defensive zone retrieval?
If you haven’t been listening/watching Dimitri Filipovic’s newlook PDOcast on YouTube with Darryl Belfry then you’re missing out. But one thing that stuck with me is the idea that the hardest work is in the offensive zone.
Bourque puts in the work in the offensive zone.
Stankoven puts in the work in the offensive zone.
Despite not being physical specimens, Texas is the best Central team precisely because they lead by example in all three zones. They aren’t just the team’s best scorers; they are the team’s best players, and the territorial throughline of a very successful team.
Lian Bichsel: (A weak) B-
It only took 15 games, but Bichsel finally played his weakest set of the year. I'm still not giving him below a B because even "bad" Bichsel is a step above most defensemen. Regardless, he was definitely off. While he's played the role of a pest to perfection, even crossing the line at times, he's never felt truly undisciplined. I know that reads funny. What I mean is that Bichsel plays on the edge as just another piece he can leverage to take control of the game; not as a crutch to shortcut plays or lose his composure. If you want to see what that looks like, watch Marchment and Hakanpaa.
However, this weekend Bichsel looked undisciplined. Colorado had no problem going after him, and Bichsel didn't respond well to their aggressive forecheck.
lol. So Will from Scouching is back. I was watching his live stream and thought I silenced the audio. I did not. That’s what you’re hearing if you have the sound on.
He also took a bad penalty against Riley Tufte trying to hold the line.
Although at least it’s an impressive penalty, bodying someone as big as Tufte with ease (and aplomb). Whether it's North American growing pains, fatigue, or just an offnight, Bichsel is capable of far better. Luckily his problems aren't foundational.
Matt Murray/Remi Poirier (A strong) A-
Murray made 39 saves in his tilt versus Colorado, and only let in one goal for an absurd .974 save percentage. Remi Poirier was less spectacular, allowing five goals on Saturday. But he faced 42 shots. Poirier has some really great games, and some really bad ones so it’ll be interesting to see where he finishes, as I don’t think his .899 save percentage on the year reflects who he really is, but I also know jackshit about goaltenders.
Antonio Stranges (A strong) A
I failed to talk about Stranges in my last Texas Stars report, which is odd, since it had nothing to do with him being invisible. On the contrary, he had three points against the Griffins two weekends ago. Against Colorado, he scored another goal, making it three apples in his last three. Do I feel like we know more about Stranges? No. But maybe that's on us.
We're so used to thinking in terms of comps (Prospect X is like NHLer Y) or archetypes (scoring winger, checking winger, shutdown defender, etc) that the peculiar players get lost. A peculiar player can be bad (Wandell), good (Hemsky), or somewhere in between (Puljujarvi or Gurianov), and that's why they tend to be difficult to assign roles; because they don’t fit into traditional stereotypes. In some ways that's reassuring. Like snowflakes, no two players are ever alike, so the fact that Stranges fits a profile that sounds fresh — in this case: three-zone rover — could work in his favor.
However, depending on the coach, it could also work against him. I think there's a world where Stranges is playing left wing next to Bourque and Stankoven. In that world, Stranges goes nuts. But peculiarities can be vices too. In the same way Hemsky paradoxically didn't work with Benn and Seguin, maybe Stranges doesn't either. Regardless, he plays his ass off.
Riley Damiani: (A strong) B+
Damiani is on track for a career best in point totals, as he’s currently on pace for 50. Is that misleading? Yea, because he was a point-per-game his rookie year which would have been a 71-point pace. Nonetheless, I’ve always liked his game, and he seems to be heating up considerably with nine points in his last seven games. Also, I dug the newlook third line of Stranges-Damiani-MacDonald.
Texas' blueline behind Bichsel (A decent) C-
Texas isn't a terribly stingy team despite being ranking ninth in goals against. That’s a testament to Murray more than anything. The Stars experience a lot of breakdowns and blown coverage. Behind Bichsel is Alex Petrovic, Derrick Puliot; usually with Christian Kyrou, and Michael Karow; who usually plays with a rotating cast of Gavin White and Artem Grushnikov. If I had my druthers, the blueline would be:
Bichsel-Kyrou
Grushnikov-White
Pouliot-Petrovic
Karow’s been solid, but in the interest of development, I’d let the youngins lead the way. It’s got the symmetry that coaches love, but beyond that, except for Kyrou, they’re all smooth skaters. As is, I don’t think Petrovic does much for Bichsel, nor do I think Pouliot is the veteran shield for Kyrou that the org thinks he is. Pouliot plays an aggressive game, which just highlights Kyrou’s defensive weaknesses whenever he gets too eager (and he does). As for Grushnikov and White, I think they’re both solid, and deserve an everyday opportunity.
Tomorrow’s game vs. San Diego
Don’t forget that Texas will be in action against the Gulls at 9:00pm. San Diego is dead last. Their goaltending has been bad, but in the spirit of today’s post, it’s worth noting how disappointing their prospects have been. Nathan Gaucher (22nd overall in 2022), has just three points. Brayden Tracey (29th overall in 2019), and Sasha Pastujov have just five points between them. Granted, Pastujov was not a first round pick, but he had first round production in his draft year (65 points for the NTDP, and 26 in 18 for the USHL, plus eight points in five games at the World Juniors) and well — let this be a lesson everytime you think a prospect with bad skating could be the next Jason Robertson; he’s usually the next Pastujov.
However, some of their other prospects are doing well like Jacob Perreault, and Olen Zellweger (a defender with 13 points).
Sidebar: why hasn’t anyone poached the blueline scouts for the Anaheim Ducks? Fowler, Manson, Lindholm, Theodore, Montour, now Mintyukov, Lacombe, Drysdale and Zellweger? Holy s*#t!
Stankoven and Bourque have the chance to lead the league in scoring overnight thanks to San Diego’s shoddy defense and netminding. Will they get there?
Quick reminder: I realize this should be without saying, but if not, I get it. Nonetheless, if you’re unfamiliar with the schedule I’ve been keeping, be sure to follow the right tabs. All of my Texas Stars analysis can be found under the Prospects tab.