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25| W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,June 7,2018 w aterloochronicle.ca Waterloo ChronicleVoluntary Pay Contribution Program We ask you to consider contributing $30 per year towards delivery of your Community Newspaper. Many of our Readers have made the decision to show their support for the Waterloo Chronicle. It is our pleasure to provide the Waterloo area with a Community Newspaper. 630 RIVERBEND DRIVE, UNIT 104, KITCHENER, ON N2K 3S2 fOR MORE INfORMaTION Call 519-623-7395 ext. 260 Yes! I would like to contribute to the Waterloo ChroniclePlease find a cheque for $30 enclosed for a 1 year contribution. Signature: _________________________________________________________ Name: _____________________________________________________________ address: ___________________________________ City:___________________ Postal Code: ____________________________ Phone #: _______________________________ We Appreciate Your Support! After three years withthe Windsor Spitfires,Waterloo's LoganStanley had the oppor- tunity to spend a year with his favourite childhood team, the Kitchener Rangers, and the Win- nipeg Jets prospect made great strides during the season along with an exceptional playoffs. Stanley, who was acquired by his hometown Rangers from Windsor on Aug. 8, 2017, after three years with the Spitfires, was a key cog in Kitchener's first Midwestern Division title in 10 years. Stanley notched a goal and an assist in his Rangers debut, which just happened to be in Windsor against his former team, who won the 2017 Memori- al Cup as hosts. "It was great to come home and play for Kitchener for a year, and live at home. Definitely grateful that I went to Windsor and had three unbelievable years there. Perfect to come home for one year and play in front of the hometown crowd and live at home with my family. I really enjoyed myself. It's too bad we couldn't have gone further, and maybe end up playing in the Memorial Cup; but we had a good run. Stanley and goalie Mario Culina shared team honours of Most Valuable Player for Kitche- ner in the playoffs, as the two excelled during the team's ex- tended run. "I think his level in the play- offs, he was the guy that didn't want to come off the ice, he was enjoying himself out there, he was playing hard and he was putting in big minutes," said Rangers coach Jay McKee. "He was playing at very, very high level throughout the playoffs." The defenceman, who was drafted 18th overall by the Jets at the 2016 NHL draft, had four goals and 16 points in 19 playoff games while being tasked to play against the opposing team's top players, including Sarnia's Jor- dan Kyrou and Sault Ste. Marie's Boris Katchouk and Morgan Frost. "It was a great month and a half or two months, however long it was, " said the 20-year-old. "I know we had a lot of fun as a team, we really came together, then obviously losing in Game 7 double OT was pretty hard, espe- cially knowing that we had a bunch of chances to win it in overtime. Definitely proud of the group we had, and we gave it everything." Following the Rang- ers' elimination, Stanley was assigned to the AHL's Manitoba Moose, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Jets. How- ever due to an injury, Stanley wasn't able to get into any games for the Moose, who were swept in the second round of the playoffs. "I started with the Moose and went to a few games and went on the road with them. If they [played] a bit longer, I think I would have started playing," said Stanley, who stands at six-foot- seven. "When they lost, a few of us stuck around and stayed up with the Jets, we just skated and practised and basically were around the atmosphere. It's cra- zy to see how much the city came together and supported the team." Stanley, who spent time with the Waterloo Wolves prior to his time with the Spitfires, is back in Waterloo following the Jets' conference final defeat to the Vegas Golden Knights, but he won't forget witnessing the fan support that was displayed in Winnipeg throughout the Jets' playoff run."It's great, it makes it a lot more fun. Knowing you've got a lot of support from your city, it's definitely easier to play when you have a sold-out rink every night," Stanley said. "The guys who are in Winnipeg are fortunate for that reason."Stan- ley said he was cheering for the Hamilton Bulldogs to win the Memorial Cup, which was even- tually won by the Acadie-Bath- hurst Titan. He hopes to crack the Jets roster this year. "Defi- nitely train and try to make the Jets this year, and probably take a couple days here and relax and play golf for a bit, next week just get back into the gym and start working on getting in good shape again." McKee sees Stanley as a "shutdown guy with offensive abilities," with very high poten- tial in the NHL. "Guys that are bigger like him usually take a little longer to develop, to adjust to the speed of the NHL," said McKee. "You look at a guy like [Zdeno] Chara who is big and strong and can impose himself physically but also some offensive abilities, that's really [Logan's] potential if everything comes together and he continues to develop and build confidence himself. "The thing with being some- one at his age in the position he's in his career is the team's he's on. He's obviously been drafted by a very good hockey club. I don't know offhand which D-men are under contract for next sea- son, which are leaving, and how that looks structurally. He's a guy that has very high potential; whether or not he sticks with the big club will have a lot to do with who's returning on defence there, how his training camp goes, what kind of development he has over the summer. There's really a lot of the factors there, you can't say someone is going to be here or there or anywhere until they get to camp and show what they can do. But if he plays to the highest of potential and there's an opening, he's certainly going to have a shot." Winnipeg has four defence- men under contract for 2018-19; Dustin Byfuglien, Tyler Myers, Dmitry Kulikov and Ben Chia- rot. They have four restricted agent defencemen, including Josh Morrissey and Jacob Trou- ba. SPORTS Rangers defenceman Logan Stanley was named co-MVP of Kitchener for their 2018 playoff run along with goaltender Mario Culina. Namish Modi/Metroland Logan Stanley reflects on season with hometown Rangers and his future Defenceman hopes to crack Winnipeg Jets' roster this year NAMISH MODI nmodi@waterloochronicle.ca