Logan Hensler has experienced plenty of highs — but even more lows — in the past 10 months.
After returning from the World Juniors last January, he was on fire, collecting points in four of his first five games back with the NCAA’s Wisconsin Badgers. And then, in a game against the University of Minnesota at the end of January, Hensler suffered three separate injuries in a freak incident while going for a hit along the boards.
Hensler was diagnosed with a torn ACL, a ruptured deltoid ligament, and a high ankle sprain. Because of the severe swelling, doctors were unable to operate on his ankle and knee until early March.
Fortunately, the 20-year-old has recovered from his injuries — and learned a lot about himself in the process.
“I think for me it was just the perspective. I was out for a while, so you know, watching from the stands, taking in different things, just overall watching a lot of hockey, so that was big,” said Hensler.
“I think that's the biggest thing, is perspective. And you know, don't take things for granted. Overall, it was a big learning experience for me.”
In April, Hensler watched from the stands as his Wisconsin teammates advanced to the NCAA championship game, where they lost to the University of Denver by a single goal.
Hensler’s head coach at Wisconsin, Mike Hastings, credits Hensler and Zachary Schulz (a New York Islanders draft pick and senior on the team who was also recovering from a long-term injury last spring) for the off-ice support they gave during the team’s run to the Frozen Four.
“Those are two guys in the top four that [we] lost, and I was really impressed with the rest of the group, as far as them just having the ‘next man up’ mentality. And I want to give some credit both to Logan and Zach on how they managed to contribute to our team,” said Hastings.
“For some of the guys that haven’t gone through [what Hensler and Schulz] have gone through in their short career here, and mentoring those guys, they were an important part of that defensive group becoming a strength for us down the stretch. And I don’t know if we’d have got there without those guys’ support.”
Hastings has also been very impressed with how Hensler handled the rehab process for his injury. He watched Hensler train all summer in Madison to be ready for the beginning of the season.
“He's just continuing to get better on a daily and weekly basis. Obviously, the injury that he had last year that cut his season short, that was a big loss for us. You never know how, one, physically, and two, mentally somebody's going to come through something that traumatic,” said Hastings.
“And he has been fantastic. From his training through the summer, as he was going through his rehab, and then really what he's done in a short time for us this year, I think he's playing with more confidence than he ever has.”
“He came back from World Juniors a year ago, and it wasn't long after that he got injured and had to sit on the sidelines and watch our team go through what we went through, and that can be very difficult for a young man.
“But he has been like a duck to water from the time that he's gotten back. He's crushed his rehab and really is in just a tremendous spot with us right now, playing in all situations for us, power play, penalty kill, even strength. And he's still a young player, but he's definitely playing above [his age] right now.”
Now fully healthy, Hensler has big expectations for the Badgers this season. Though he was able to travel to Las Vegas with the team for the Frozen Four, obviously, he wished he was also on the ice playing for a national championship, like the many he watched on television as a kid.
“I think the biggest thing we've been harping on ever since the start of the season has been, you know, we want to get back there,” said Hensler.
“It kind of left a little sour taste in our mouth, how it ended. So I think the big goal right now is get back to that game, and take it game by game, weekend by weekend.”
The Badgers entered Big Ten Conference play ranked second in the country (behind Michigan) and won all four non-conference games by a combined score of 13-3. Then, the Badgers handed the previously undefeated Western Michigan Broncos their first loss of the season on Oct. 24, blanking the sixth-ranked team in the country 4-0.
“Winning that just gave us a lot of confidence. You know, vibes are pretty high in the locker right now, which is awesome. And this year's team… the glue’s in there, so it's been awesome,” said Hensler.
Through the first two weekends of Big 10 play, the Badgers are 3-0-1 and have outscored their opponents 23-3. Overall, they’re 7-0-1 and have outscored their opponents 36-6.
Hensler has two goals and nine points through those eight games, and is well on his way of surpassing his career high of 12 points.
Last Thursday, he was also named to the U.S. Collegiate Selects team that will travel to Switzerland to play in the 2026 Spengler Cup.
“I'm feeling great, especially coming back from injury and having a strong start this season. My goal is to defend hard and hopefully keep the points rolling. And overall, at the end of the day, it's winning games, that's what I'm most excited about this year, for sure.”
Hastings says that beyond the offence that Hensler is demonstrating this season, he carries a lot of pro-ready attributes.
“He's starting to play with a confidence now, with and without the puck. He comes in, and he’s a pretty accomplished offensive defenseman, you know. And as you climb the ladder of development, at [the pro] level they're looking for a consistency of being able to defend first,” said Hastings.
“And one of Logan's strengths is he likes to get up into the play. Really, just his maturation process of when to [get up into the play], when not to, and his play now away from the puck, his attention to taking pride on the defensive side is matching the offensive side.
“When you do that, you get a player that can play in all situations, and a player that can play wherever the puck is, O-zone, neutral zone, defensive zone, and he's really matured in his outlook and the value that he puts on his play away from the puck.
“His maturation's really been impressive for a young player, to come in and do what he's done, and gone through what he's gone through, and then come back and [have to] reset. [He’s] taking a personal pride in his entire game, not just one aspect.”
Hensler has ambitions of following former Badgers teammate Blake Montgomery’s footsteps and turning pro. He’s been keeping up with Montgomery’s start to the season in Belleville.
“He's a really good friend of mine. He’s been liking the pro schedule of the games, and he's a gamer in my opinion, so it's cool to see. Hopefully, I get to join him soon there, and overall just get started [with pro hockey]. It'd be awesome,” said Hensler.
For now though, Hensler is enjoying another year with his teammates in Madison. Though he grew up in Minnesota as a Twins fan, these days he supports the Brewers as well, and he and the Badgers followed their World Series win closely. They’ll do their best this season to bring another championship home to the state of Wisconsin.
The college schedule also makes it easier to manage the recovery from his injuries, with games primarily on Fridays and Saturdays.
“The weekend games make it so much easier to manage my injury. Say I have a tough weekend, I get that Sunday off for sure, and then you know going into Monday, I can practice, manage it, get that recovery in, at least four days, and then, you know, right back at it,” said Hensler.
“So it's been nice playing that that college schedule, just to be able to manage my leg and my recovery process.”
