The NHL’s trade deadline was surprisingly a big breaking news day for Kamloops sports fans, as two former Blazers captains were traded to different teams on Friday.
Logan Stankoven was traded from the Dallas Stars to the Carolina Hurricanes, while Fraser Minten’s time with the Toronto Maple Leafs ended when the Boston Bruins acquired him in a separate trade.
The deadline for trades occurred on March 7, marking the final day during the 2024-25 season that teams can make trades until the offseason.
On Friday, local Blazers’ sportscaster Jon Keen interviewed Stankoven after the trade news broke on his podcast The Blaze to get his reaction.
“It’s something that kind of came out of the blue; I didn’t really expect it at all,” Stankoven said. “[I’m] definitely upset but excited for a new opportunity.”
Stankoven was raised in Kamloops and was a member of the Blazers roster for two separate seasons – 2018-19 and 2022-23, amassing an impressive 260 points in 179 regular-season games while wearing the blue and orange.
He was drafted in the second round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft by the Dallas Stars and has spent time on the main roster during the past two seasons. He has nine goals, 20 assists and 29 total points this year.
Stankoven was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Mikko Rantanen, along with two first-round picks and two third-round picks from the Dallas Stars.
Although Fraser Minten originally hailed from Vancouver, Kamloops became a second home for him during his time with the Blazers between 2020 and 2023. He posted 150 points throughout his 151 games in Kamloops.
Minten was also a second-round pick in the NHL — selected at number 38 by the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 2022 draft.
Throughout two seasons, Minten played 19 games with the Maple Leafs, scoring four points. However, he has spent most of his time with the Leafs’ AHL affiliate team, the Toronto Marlies.
During his limited run in the show, he earned praise from Leafs staff.
“He’s excellent. He talks, really, like a vet on the bench,” Maple Leafs Head Coach Craig Berube said of Minten during a December press conference. “He’s already got that mindset and knows the game extremely well,”
Minten was shipped to the Boston Bruins with a conditional first-round pick and fourth-rounder in exchange for defenceman Brandon Carlo.
Stankoven served as captain during the 2022-23 Blazers season, while Minten served as captain during the 2023-24 season before being traded to the Saskatoon Blades.