West Mifflin’s Logan Cooley is ready for his 1st game against the Penguins
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Over the summer, New York Rangers forward Vince Trochek helped round up a group of NHLers with ties to the Pittsburgh region for some informal skates at Bairel Ice Complex in Warrendale.
It has been a common occurrence in the decade-plus since Trochek, of Upper St. Clair, and others such as Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson (Whitehall) and Vancouver Canucks forward J.T. Miller (Coraopolis by way of East Palestine, Ohio) were all selected in the 2011 NHL Draft, along with St. Louis Blues forward Brandon Saad (Gibsonia).
There’s plenty of talent among those players.
But not many actual players.
After all, this is Pittsburgh, not Peterborough, Ontario. Relatively few NHLers have come from the region.
But, this past summer, that select fraternity added one more to the mix in Arizona Coyotes forward and West Mifflin native Logan Cooley.
The third overall pick in 2022 — the highest a Pittsburgh-area player has been drafted in the NHL — Cooley, 19, is in the midst of his first season.
“Skated with him a bunch this summer,” Trocheck said Nov. 22. “It was awesome to have him out there with us because it was so hard to defend him. It’s a great challenge to have in the offseason. He’s a great kid. He’s going to be a great hockey player for a while.”
Cooley is scheduled to skate in front of a bigger audience Tuesday when he plays his first game against the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena.
“When I decided to sign, it was kind of the first game you look at it and kind of see when you’re playing your hometown team,” Cooley said via a video conference Dec. 5. “So, yeah, I mean, it’s definitely been circled on the calendar for a while now.”
Cooley has gone through some ups and downs in his first NHL season. Through Monday, he has appeared in 27 games and has scored 15 points (three goals, 12 assists).
The majority of those points (11) came in his first 14 games.
Since then, Cooley (5-foot-10, 174 pounds) has been sporadically benched while navigating the challenges of being a teenager playing against grown men in the world’s best league.
“It’s definitely been a whirlwind,” said Cooley, who left the University of Minnesota after starring as a freshman last season. “Obviously, it was a busy summer with deciding to turn pro or go back to school. So settling in nice, getting a little more comfortable each game. The guys have been great to me, helping me on and off the ice.”
Cooley got some help on the ice as an adolescent from another significant figure in Pittsburgh hockey.
Sidney Crosby.
In 2008, Crosby began his “Little Penguins” program, which distributes free equipment to area kids in hopes of encouraging them to pick up the sport. Crosby had no designs on the initiative producing high-end NHL talent.
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“When we started doing that, it wasn’t necessarily to have kids come out of it and make the NHL,” Crosby said after practice Sunday at PPG Paints Arena. “It was more just to introduce them to the game. The fact that he started in it and got to the NHL and he’s playing at the level that he’s playing at, that’s pretty cool. Happy that’s the case. It looks like he’s playing some great hockey.”
Cooley, who was born in 2004, was pretty well immersed in the sport before taking part in Crosby’s program. His uncles, John and Tom Mooney, were among the first players from the Pittsburgh area to play Division I hockey in the 1980s.
But the opportunity to get pricey equipment for free was never lost on a grateful Cooley.
“Hockey is an expensive sport,” Cooley said. “There’s some families out there that can’t afford it. For him to give you free equipment, just for kids to go out there, have fun and see what it’s all about, it’s when I first fell in love with the game. When I first stepped foot on that ice, I knew I loved it and wanted to do something special with it. It was definitely huge. It was a huge start for my career. It was super fun to have a guy like Crosby kind of get me started with the game.”
Cooley, a left-handed shot, isn’t likely to be the last member of his clan to reach the NHL.
Cousin L.J. Mooney, a 16-year-old who also hails from West Mifflin, is following his path. Like Cooley, Mooney was a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite youth program and is stationed with the U.S. National Team Development Program based in Plymouth, Mich.
Anticipated to be a draft pick in 2025, Mooney got advice from a trusted voice on what school to commit to.
“He just recently committed to the University of Minnesota, which I was kind of pushing for him to do that,” Cooley said. “It’s cool to see what he’s doing at the program. He’s going to be a heck of a player. I’m excited to see what he can do in these next few years.”
Countless members of Cooley’s family, as well as friends, will be in attendance for Tuesday’s contest.
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His success is very much theirs, as well.
“Everyone in my family, it’s been a huge sacrifice, especially coming from my parents,” Cooley said. “I have two older brothers that played, also, just running from rink to rink. Obviously, it’s an expensive sport, also. So they sacrificed a lot of their time and put a lot of effort to do everything they can to make us successful.
“Just super grateful and appreciative for everything they’ve done for me.”
This also will be a moment to celebrate the sport in Pittsburgh at PPG Paints Arena.
“I always wanted to be out on that ice, whether it was with the Penguins or with a different team,” Cooley said. “Now, it’s finally starting to come true. I’m really looking forward to it. Obviously, there’s some guys that I looked up to on that team, whether it be Crosby, (forward Evgeni) Malkin, all those guys have done some special things in this league. To be able to go against them and compete against guys like Crosby, one of the best players in the league, it’s going to be a dream come true, and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Crosby seems eager for the moment, as well, even if Cooley grew up a fan of rival Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin.
“I respect his loyalty,” Crosby quipped. “He’s holding strong on that. I don’t mind that. There’s worse players you could follow than (Ovechkin). He’s a great player, and he’s got an interesting mix of skills. He’s got a big shot. He’s got really good hands, he skates well.
“I wouldn’t say he’s (only) a pure shooter. He can do a lot.”
That skill set has him on a trajectory that could allow him to be the best player ever from Pittsburgh.
“I would say he’s far ahead of where we were,” Trocheck said of himself and his fellow 2011 draftees. “He’s making an immediate impact.”
Johnny Gibson was really good when he came into the league. Brandon came into the league pretty hot, too, with two (Stanley Cup championships). Me and J.T. took some time.
“But Logan, he’s coming out of the gates pretty hot.”