New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald continues to get punished by his draft failures. The latest example of this came on Easter Sunday, when Carolina Hurricanes forward Logan Stankoven scored two goals against the Devils, including the game-winner, in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Stankoven, 22, has long been a subject of interest from Devils fans. In 2021, the diminutive Hurricanes forward was drafted 47th overall by the Dallas Stars.
As for the Devils, they did not have a second-round selection in 2021, but they did have two first-round picks. One became Luke Hughes, and the other became Chase Stillman.
Stillman was considered a massive reach by many draftniks, and EliteProspects ranked the high-energy forward 41st in their pre-draft rankings. Stankoven was ranked 26th and, despite being passed over due to his 5-foot-8 frame, has already made his NHL debut and punished the Devils twice for their mistake.
Stillman, on the other hand, has 12 points in 65 AHL games this season, has yet to make his NHL debut, and has already been traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins as part of the deal that yielded the Devils Cody Glass.
Logan Stankoven was the right pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, and four years later, the Devils are paying the price.
Stankoven, too, was traded this season - by the Stars to the Hurricanes as part of a massive package for superstar forward Mikko Rantanen.
With his skillset and willingness to engage physically, Stankoven has proven to be a perfect fit with the Hurricanes early in his tenure. For years, the Devils and Devils fans vowed to get bigger and stronger, and all they have done is gotten slower and less talented, weakening the already thin supporting cast around Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, and Jesper Bratt.
Plus, a similarly talented forward like Dawson Mercer has regressed two straight seasons, which only amplifies the importance of drafting strongly. If Mercer is not going, Stankoven could have jumped in and replaced him.
Instead, when Mercer is not going, the Devils continue to play him anyway because they lack viable alternatives in the wake of Hughes's season-ending shoulder injury.
Stankoven rubs salt in one of many wounds created by Fitzgerald's draft whiffs, and that will remain at the forefront of playoff discussion for as long as the Devils continue to struggle as badly as they did in Game 1.