The Stars’ season finale in Edmonton last spring marked a changing of the guard for the franchise.
Many players were teary-eyed as they said their goodbyes to NHL vet Joe Pavelski, who played his final game in the Western Conference finals.
Meanwhile, across the locker room, others like Mavrik Bourque were bright-eyed and saw the Game 6 finale as the start of a new chapter.
“I think it was huge for me confidence-wise,” Bourque, 22, said in a recent interview with The Dallas Morning News. “Seeing all the older guys all down when they lose, it’s something you don’t want to feel. And I think it’s something we’re going to build on all year.”
As last season came to a close, head coach Pete DeBoer decided to give Bourque a chance to contribute to the Stars’ playoff run, as their Stanley Cup hopes diminished. And while the team’s season came to an end that night in Edmonton, it foreshadowed the opportunity Bourque would get in Dallas come this fall.
Four months after making his NHL playoff debut and six months after playing in his first game in the league, Bourque has earned a more permanent spot on Dallas’ NHL roster. While he’ll likely miss the season opener Thursday due to injury, Bourque enters the season as one of the league’s most promising rookies.
But unlike some of his teammates, Bourque’s journey to the NHL has required patience that may not have been required had he been on any other franchise.
After a breakout, 77-point season in the AHL where he became the league’s scoring champion and MVP, Bourque has done all he can to earn his spot on the game’s biggest stage, making it almost impossible to leave him off the roster any longer.
“Mavrik’s done everything we could ask him to do,” Stars GM Jim Nill said. “There’s not much more he could do. … If it wasn’t probably for the cap restraints, he probably would’ve come up more. It’s his time now. He’s got to earn it, but so far, he has earned that.”
Taking nothing for granted
There was competition for a forward spot in Stars training camp this year, but Bourque was not a part of it.
With Dallas still needing a 13th forward, many of Bourque’s AHL teammates from last year competed for the spot that was ultimately won by Oskar Bäck.
For the first time in his career, Bourque entered camp knowing there was another spot there for his taking.
“It was a lot different,” Bourque said. “Obviously, the NHL is the best league in the world, so you take nothing for granted, but at the end of the day, I knew I had my chance, and they told me I was gonna have a good opportunity to show up and prove that I’m ready and earn my spot. I kind of knew that they had a place for me. I just had to show it.”
Conversations with Nill and DeBoer over the summer led to an understanding within the Stars organization that Bourque would have a spot waiting for him, likely on Dallas’ third line.
Pavelski’s retirement bumped Wyatt Johnston up to the top line, leaving a center position available between Jamie Benn and Logan Stankoven. Since Bourque and Stankoven were linemates in Cedar Park — and two of the AHL’s best players when they skated together — it was an easy decision to renew that chemistry alongside the Stars’ captain.
“I think we just work really well off each other,” Stankoven said. “I think both of us are competitive guys, and we’re hungry, and we’re just looking to get better. It’s nice to have another younger guy come up. We know it’s going to take a little bit of time to contribute offensively and hopefully do the same things we did down in the AHL, but I think with time, we’re confident we can get back to that.”
Bourque said he didn’t change his approach despite the available roster spot. Since he was drafted 30th overall in 2020, he’s had to work for his opportunities while maintaining a level of patience many players his age may not have had.
Last season, the Stars’ forward depth didn’t leave any openings during camp for Bourque to fight for a spot, as Johnston had done the year before. Cap restraints kept him in the AHL for the first half of the year.
Around the trade deadline, a spot opened but his linemate Stankoven got the nod. By that point, the Stars’ top two picks in the 2021 draft (Johnston and Stankoven) had earned spots on the NHL roster, while Bourque, a 2020 pick, had to continue his year in the AHL.
He finally made his NHL debut April 6 against Chicago but immediately went back to Cedar Park for the Texas Stars’ playoff run. He spent most of the Dallas Stars’ playoff run as a practice player before getting in one game.
“Something we talk to all our prospects and players about is you truly can’t control the timing of your opportunity,” Texas Stars head coach Neil Graham said. “Everyone is looking for that opportunity or hopeful to get a chance with Dallas, but you can’t control when that comes. Something we preach is controlling your attitude and your effort on a daily basis, and there’s no better example than Mavrik Bourque.”
There’s a reason those in the Stars organization say Bourque did everything asked of him. Rather than feeling defeated during a long AHL season while his former teammates shined in Dallas, Bourque became the best player in Texas —and the entire league.
Even without his linemate Stankoven for half the year, he became the league’s youngest scoring champion since 2013 and continued to produce even as other teams keyed on him.
Graham said Bourque worked to make his game more well-rounded, taking on a unique position as a leading scorer and elite penalty killer with a strong defensive mind, similar to that of Johnston.
“Without the mental strength he had, that could’ve been very tough for your average person or player,” Graham said. “He was focused on his day to day. He was the first guy at the rink. He was the last one on the ice every day in practice. He was able to be the best player in the league from game one through the end of the year and playoffs, for that matter, until we were eliminated. He’s shown and proven he can be well-rounded. That’s very difficult to do.”
Grabbing the opportunity
The 22-year-old will face one final hurdle before becoming a mainstay of the Stars’ lineup.
He’s beginning the season with an injury and is listed as doubtful for the season opener against Nashville.
DeBoer called the injury “short term” and expects him to finally get his opportunity soon.
When he does, he’ll have to adjust to a new league and a new role. He’ll no longer be the main scoring threat, nor will he be leaned on for a 70-point season.
“He’s ready for that challenge,” Graham said. “If the points come, great, and if they don’t right away, he now knows how to contribute in other intangibles that don’t always show up on the scoresheet.”
The Stars’ philosophy has always been to call up young players only when they feel can make a difference each night. It’s why they’ve been so conservative with developing young prospects like Thomas Harley, Stankoven and Bourque, keeping them in Cedar Park to ensure they’re playing night in and night out.
So Bourque’s call-up means the coaching staff is confident he’ll be able to contribute immediately.
“It means they give opportunities to most of the young guys,” Bourque said. “It’s something I’m looking forward to having the opportunity, but now it’s on me to grab it.”
Game 6 in Edmonton marked a turning point for the Stars’ franchise. With Bourque finally getting his opportunity, Dallas’ future is officially here.
“If you look at his trajectory and what he’s done at the American Hockey League level, it’s pretty special,” Stars assistant coach Misha Donskov said. “He’s earned the opportunity to have an opportunity within our NHL team in a significant role.
“He’s earned the opportunity to be here.”
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