Hurricanes' Stankoven grows into 1st year as 2nd-line center, gets hot start to the NHL playoffs

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Carolina Hurricanes' Logan Stankoven (22) celebrates scoring on Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark (35) during the third period in Game 4 of a first-round NHL Stanley Cup playoff hockey series, Saturday, April 25, 2026, in Ottawa, Ontario. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

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Carolina Hurricanes' Logan Stankoven (22) celebrates after his goal against the Ottawa Senators during the first period of Game 2 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — It had been a while since the Carolina Hurricanes had finished practice, with players coming and going from the locker room. Yet Logan Stankoven was still on the ice, leaving a crowd of reporters patiently waiting at his locker. Such is the dynamic for the 23-year-old as the Eastern Conference's top seed heads into Round 2 of the NHL playoffs to face the Philadelphia Flyers. Stankoven has been rolling at nearly a point-per-game pace going back to mid-March, including scoring in every game of Carolina's first-round sweep of Ottawa. Beyond the immediacy of that spotlight, though, is the other piece of Stankoven's story: the Hurricanes are betting he can keep growing into the role as second-line center, coming after spending multiple seasons searching for an answer there. “Some guys are able to just jump right into the league and produce right away,” Stankoven said. “I think for me, it's taken me a little bit longer to get where I want to be. I'm still not a finished product. I just want to be the best version of myself and help this team win a Cup.” The raw stats, at least, say Stankoven has been every bit of that of late, even with an undersized 5-foot-8, 165-pound frame. He had 10 goals and six assists in his last 18 regular-season games, then four goals and an assist in the Ottawa sweep. He's centering a line that has been cooking with veteran Taylor Hall (two goals, five assists in Round 1) and fellow youngster Jackson Blake (one goal, three assists). That line offset a quiet offensive series from the Sebastian Aho-centered top line with Seth Jarvis and Andrei Svechnikov. It also illustrated the Hurricanes' depth as the NHL's only team with seven players to score at least 20 regular-season goals. “You knew this was in him,” general manager Eric Tulsky said of Stankoven's regular-season finish. “People worry a lot about his height. In the end, it's about how hard you fight.”

Growing into the role

Stankoven had played center coming up through the sport. He moved to the wing in the pros, making his NHL debut with the Dallas Stars in February 2024 before being traded last year to Carolina. The Hurricanes reached a second Eastern Conference Final in three seasons. Then coach Rod Brind'Amour — an elite two-way center himself and captain of Carolina's 2006 Cup winner — floated the idea in exit interviews of moving Stankoven to the middle for preseason camp. Notably, that meant taking on the challenge of winning faceoffs, a vital piece for a Carolina team that leans into puck possession and an aggressive forecheck to press its 5-on-5 attack. While Stankoven was ready to do whatever was asked, it hasn't always been smooth. And by the Olympic break, Stankoven was frustrated with the early returns as he went back to his hometown of Kamloops, British Columbia. His father, Wes, could see it. So the family tried to keep things light and positive, while he joined Logan in watching some videos of faceoff formations and other tips while also letting him vent. “I just tried to be supportive and helpful because it's a big learning curve for him," Wes Stankoven said in an interview with The Associated Press. “When you're facing off against (Sidney) Crosby and (Leon) Draisaitl and these kind of players who are tenured in the NHL, it's tough at times. The crowd gets on you a bit and you've got to start winning those faceoffs, especially in the defensive zones. Yeah, he was kind of stressed about it a bit.” Dad's best advice? Keep working. Learn from Brind’Amour. Remember it can take years to master a role like this.

Learning curve

Stankoven has largely trended in the right direction. Beyond the uptick in points, he went from winning 43.1% of his regular-season faceoffs from October to December to 45.5% after the start of 2026. He also went from winning 40.3% of his defensive-zone faceoffs before the Olympic break to 46.2% afterward. “I feel like positionally, just anticipating plays, I know where to be and where to go," Stankoven said. "But faceoffs, I've just got to keep working on getting in there and owning the dot.” To his point, Stankoven won just 36.2% of his faceoffs in the series against an Ottawa team that was No. 2 in the league in the circle during the regular season. “Yeah, we threw a little curveball at him: more responsibility, center’s just a little more responsibility on certain things," Brind'Amour said. "He’s picked it up and he’s putting in the work. ... This is not something that he’s just doing to impress somebody or try to win a spot. This is because he wants to be the best he can be.”

A multi-year search

For the Hurricanes, Stankoven offers the potential to solve a long-running lineup question since Vincent Trocheck signed with the New York Rangers in 2022. The Hurricanes primarily gave a long look at Jesperi Kotkaniemi, including for multiple playoff games last year, while leaving skilled forward Martin Necas working as a winger. The Hurricanes ultimately sent Necas to Colorado in the big-swing trade that landed Mikko Rantanen in 2025, only to have to deal Rantanen roughly a month later to Dallas when it became clear the star forward wouldn't sign a longer-term deal. Stankoven was the primary return in that second deal, scoring twice in his Carolina playoff debut while working on the wing throughout last postseason. He showed enough in his first season as an NHL center that Tulsky largely stood pat at the trade deadline in March. His Round 1 play has only reinforced that optimism. “It's a good feeling when those people up top are watching and believe in me, and know that I have another level to get to, which I feel like I have been lately," Stankoven said. "Just keep on being the best version myself and building each year.” \\\_ AP NHL playoffs: and