For the Stankoven family – this is nothing new.
Twentythree year-old Logan Stankoven finds himself in his 3rd straight NHL Stanley Cup Conference Finals and the family and local supporters are once again along for the ride.
“We’re pretty fortunate to have this opportunity to watch him again in the playoffs, dad Wes Stankoven commented after being reached by Radio NL’s Jon Keen.
“All the support from the community, it just seems to grow every year since he played for the Blazers. It’s really neat to see.”
Stankoven and the Carolina Hurricanes lead the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference final with game four set for Wednesday night in Montreal.
The family also tries to make as many playoff games in-person as possible but Wes admits it’s getting harder to get the time off from work. Daughter Macie was down for the two Carolina home games against Montreal staged in Raleigh, North Carolina.
“We went to all the games in the 2nd round series against Philadelphia – even drove to the road games with some friends,” said Wes.
Did they dare wear their Stankoven jerseys in Philadelphia? A renowned rabid fanbase.
Mom – Deana Stankoven
“(Laughs) no we didn’t wear the jerseys. We were warned in Raleigh before we left,” continued Stankoven.
“It was pretty crazy, their fans are passionate. Apparently they have jail cells and a judge below the stadiums for gamedays.”
Wes says the online support from Kamloops is welcomed.
“You see lots of stuff on Facebook, lots of support. There are a lot of Habs fans in Kamloops so there’s some banter back and forth. It’s all good. Logan sees it all and appreciates the messages.”
The Hurricanes are sitting six wins away from the Stanley Cup. Getting by Montreal would put them into the Stanley Cup final against the Vegas Golden Knights. Has the family thought about the Stanley Cup coming to Kamloops this summer?
“That would be awesome,” gleamed Wes.
“Logan talks about wanting to bring a Stanley Cup back to Kamloops. It’s something he would really be proud of. I don’t know what we would do with it – maybe (Jon) you have some ideas (laughs).”
Wes is aware the road ahead is still long.
“If they can get past Montreal, that will be another tough series (vs Vegas). I’ve got the time off work and we will be there no question.”
