The driving force for the San Jose Sharks is somewhat hidden in plain sight. He's not the sentimental favourite — that would be Joe Thornton , with neutrals everywhere hoping the 39-year-old lifts the Cup. He's not necessarily the leader of the team with a catchy nickname to boot in "Captain America," Joe Pavelski .
He's not even a shapeshifter in the sense of defenceman-by-name Brent Burns or a transcendent skater like Erik Karlsson , but make no mistake: Logan Couture is everywhere, and the totality of his game was on full display during Saturday's 6-3 win over the Blues while he took hold of the playoff scoring lead in the process.
Couture's strong ability to navigate space was clear on the game's opening goal. After Timo Meier dislodged the puck from Blues captain Alex Pietrangelo , Gustav Nyquist came flying in with strong support and turned up ice. Couture immediately read the play as soon as Meier won the puck, wheeled to the outside and buried into an open cage.
The nearest defender in sight barely enters the frame as Couture is off to the races to celebrate the game's opening tally.
He was just getting started.
Holding a perilous 3-2 lead, Couture deftly strips the puck from Colton Parayko , which set up a fantastic fourth goal by Timo Meier. It's a play that few would even notice leading up to the goal but it's often the subtleties of the game that matter at this juncture. By picking off one of the Blues' defensive stalwarts at an opportune time, Couture is sending notice that he'll need to be accounted for in all zones, at all times.
He may not often be discussed among the game's elite scorers, but if you look at the company that Couture has joined it would be outrageous not to consider him among the league's most dangerous all-around threats come spring time.
Couture, who took over both the playoff goals and points lead in Game 1, has more postseason markers than Sidney Crosby over the past five years and is the NHL's third-highest goal-scorer over that span. He's also the only player in San Jose Sharks franchise history to record double-digit tallies in two or more postseasons.
The 30-year-old led the Stanley Cup playoffs by a whopping six points when the Sharks lost to the Penguins in the 2016 final.
He's proven to be a hallmark of postseason consistency, and as the Sharks look to eventually lift their first Stanley Cup, it'll be the all-around dynamo Couture providing the brunt of the offence and defensive accountability while steering the ship.
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