Stankoven 'built to play' for Hurricanes during playoffs after trade with Stars for Rantanen

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- The Carolina Hurricanes obviously knew they were trading the best player in the deal when they shipped Mikko Rantanen to the Dallas Stars, but they had to make sure they got the right player as part of the return package.

That player scored the goal that saved Carolina's season Monday.

Logan Stankoven's shot that went in over Sergei Bobrovsky's blocker at 10:45 of the second period stood up as the game-winner in a 3-0 victory against the Florida Panthers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final at Amerant Bank Arena.

Stankoven has five goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including two game-winners, and has been arguably the Hurricanes' best player in the best-of-7 series against the Panthers, who lead 3-1 going into Game 5 at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

"When his name came up (in the trade discussion with Dallas), there were a couple people in our room who practically jumped out of their chair saying, 'That guy is a Carolina Hurricane,'" Carolina general manager Eric Tulsky told NHL.com. "He was the player that our staff wanted."

More than Stankoven's production has been his consistent presence on every shift, something the Hurricanes need more from their top players if they want to extend the series beyond Wednesday.

"He's got a lot of fight in his game," Carolina captain Jordan Staal said after Game 4. "He doesn't quit on any pucks. He's tenacious. He's a Hurricane through and through. He got us going tonight, but even last game he was our best player and throughout this whole series he's been our best player.

"Hopefully we won't continue to rely on him, but hopefully he keeps playing that way and we get some other guys building off that too."

Stankoven was the only actual NHL player the Hurricanes received in the Rantanen deal before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 7. They also got two conditional first-round draft picks (2026 and 2028) and two third-round selections (2026 and 2027).

Those picks might eventually turn into players for them, but Carolina is a win-now team that also keeps an eye on the future, which is why acquiring Stankoven was so important.

If you're going to bottle up the hockey the Hurricanes play into one player, he is it. That he's 22 and already has played 33 NHL playoff games, with 16 points (eight goals, eight assists) to show for it, is all the more reason to be excited about him.

"We played against (the Stars) a couple times and there's certain players you don't know much about, but as a coach when you're pre-scouting you're always like, 'Who is that guy? Who is that guy? He's always around it,'" Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "Obviously, we love that about him. We love the fact that he's young and can still get better.

"The talent part is obvious when you watch, but just the fact that I think when he's out there you notice him."

Stankoven didn't know how the Hurricanes felt about him until he had conversations with Tulsky and Brind'Amour after the trade.

"It makes you feel better when you know you're wanted like that," he said. "Obviously, it's never a fun time being traded from a great team like Dallas. You're drafted by them, and you build relationships with those guys, but once you figure out afterwards why they wanted you, yeah, it's a good feeling."

Carolina's style of play made the transition easier. Stankoven knew after a few games how well he fit, and said the coaching staff's message to him was essentially just go play your game because that's our game too.

He had nine points (five goals, four assists) in 19 regular-season games for the Hurricanes and 29 points (nine goals, 20 assists) in 59 games for the Stars.

"It's been a great fit," Stankoven said. "Full gas. Aggressive on pucks. Hunting pucks. Creating turnovers. The way we play, it's pressure all over the ice, which is great. Obviously, there's thinking, but at the same time if you're in doubt the coaches would rather you make a mistake being overaggressive than not aggressive enough, which is how I play."

Stankoven isn't your typical rookie.

He played 24 regular-season games for Dallas last season. He would have lost his rookie eligibility this season had he played in two more.

Stankoven also played 19 playoff games last season, six in the Western Conference Final against the Edmonton Oilers.

When he skated in Game 1 against Florida, he became the second NHL rookie since 1994 to play in both the Western and Eastern Conference Final as a rookie. Ville Leino did it with the Detroit Red Wings (West) in 2009 and Philadelphia Flyers (East) in 2010.

When he scored in Game 3, he became the first rookie since 1994 to get a point in both conference finals. He also had two assists with the Stars against the Oilers in that series last season.

"Really blessed and fortunate to be on two great teams so far in my career," Stankoven said. "It's meaningful hockey. It's where you want to be. There's no place you'd rather be at this time than playing in big games like this. It's great to get this experience under my belt."

Stankoven said the experience has taught him patience, which isn't always a prominent trait for 22-year-olds in the NHL, but it's probably why he didn't fret when he missed a wide-open net on a redirect in the first period of Game 1, only to have the Panthers come down the ice and score 34 seconds later to take a 2-0 lead.

He stayed with it even through a tougher Game 2, when he was held without a shot on goal, and Game 3, when he was Carolina's best player with a goal and an assist in a game that required a lot more from everyone else.

So when he got his chance in Game 4, in space on the left side of the ice off a beautiful blind backhand pass from rookie defenseman Alexander Nikishin, Stankoven knew what to do.

In fact, he said before the series began that he felt his offensive game was starting to come because, "I'm starting to learn how to beat goalies now and how to go to the right areas to get chances."

His goal Monday is a perfect example of that, coupled with patience.

"You never know when things are going to open up and you're going to get your chances," Stankoven said. "So you've got to stay ready and make sure you bear down."

Rantanen has done some special things for the Stars in the playoffs. That's unlikely to stop. The Hurricanes know that. They know they didn't get the best player in the trade, but they think they got the right player for who they are and how they play.

"It was mostly about the fit," Tulsky said. "Our coaches, out scouting staff, everybody watched him said, 'This is a guy who is built to play for the Hurricanes.' So that was the No. 1 thing. On top of that we know we're getting skill, we know we're getting competitiveness, and we know we're getting someone who can drop into our team and play the way we want to."

They're not wrong.