Believe it or not, there is a large portion of the hockey-watching community that simply doesn't understand the value Logan Couture brings to the San Jose Sharks AND the NHL as a whole.
From the moment I began blogging about the San Jose Sharks, Logan Couture drew me in. His tenacious pursuit of the puck, his scoring ability, his unselfish play and his unwavering commitment to his teammates and the team were infectious. Couture is a prime example of the qualities in hockey players that allow us to love them so much.
Since he first broke onto the San Jose scene full-time in 2010-11, No. 39 has proven himself worthy of a top-six, top-minutes, important-minutes role with the Sharks. He scored a game-winning goal in the first game of that season and finished second in Calder voting, but that was just the tip of what is becoming a remarkable career.
Couture is a model of consistency in both the regular season and the playoffs. How many times do we question a player's mental toughness because the numbers drop off dramatically when it matters most? Couture is not that guy.
The 30-year-old veteran has 507 points in 663 career regular season games. His point total is nearly split down the middle in terms of goals (240) and assists (267). His playoff numbers mirror that of his regular season stats. In 106 playoff games, Couture has 93 points and that too is a near split (43g 50a). And what's more interesting is that the percentage of GWG's is nearly identical in the regular season and playoffs. In fact, his playoff GWG percentage jumps up a bit from 17.9% to 18.6% - meaning - nearly 1 in 5 of his playoff goals is of the game-deciding variety.
I didn't have to be convinced and I already love the guy, but the way he responded to Joe Pavelski's injury in game 7 against Vegas, catapulted him to legend status in my eyes. Not only did Couture score two of the four goals on that historic power-play, but he very clearly jump-started his teams' emotional level and took it into the stratosphere.
Fast forward to game three of this current series; Couture collects his first career playoff hat trick in a series many wanted to write the Sharks off in. The Sharks hold a 2-1 series lead and maintain their home-ice advantage. He's the heart and soul in San Jose and he further solidifies that title with every single shift he skates.
As of today, Couture is tied for the most playoff points in the league with 12 and he's first overall in goals with nine! The next closest goal scorers have six - BTW, one of those guys in Tomas Hertl.
Lastly, Since 2010 only Alex Ovechkin has more playoff goals (50) than Couture's 43. That's more than Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, More than Sidney Crosby, More than Evgeni Malkin and so on. His 93 playoff points rank sixth since 2010 and he could move up to fourth before this series is over. He trails fourth-place Toews, but a mere four points. He's a proven performer that nobody outside of NorCal thinks of.
Unfortunately, I feel like the only way he gets his due is by winning the Stanley Cup. And believe you me, if the Sharks go all the way and win that elusive Cup, Logan Couture will be right at the top of the Conn Smythe voting and deservedly so.
Let's show Logan some love and enjoy that he bleeds teal and black.
Thanks for reading, Steve