Oilers prospect Stefan comfortable with underdog status as Winterhawks push for first win in WHL Championship Series

Moose Jaw, Sask.- The Portland Winterhawks may be down 2-0 in the WHL Championship Series, but the odds don’t bother alternate captain James Stefan.

After all, proving people wrong has been a running theme throughout his young career.

“I feel like I’ve kind of been an underdog my whole life,” Stefan said. “When I was younger, I felt like I wasn’t the best player. You could call me a late bloomer.”

Stefan had been passed over in both the WHL and USHL draft as a youngster.

Still, the Portland Winterhawks took noticed and listed the Laguna Beach, Calif. product.

Despite putting up back-to-back seasons with 20 or more goals, the winger also went unselected in the NHL Draft.

“I had a chip on my shoulder and kind of just wanted to work hard and put my head down,” Stefan admitted.

As Stefan got older- and a little bigger- he started to put the puzzle together.

“When he came into the league, much like a lot of young players, they have to develop physically,” Winterhawks General Manager and Head Coach Mike Johnston said. “He had the tools. He had hockey sense, he had great skills, he could score, but physically, each year, he’s gotten better and better and better at filling out and developing power. His whole body is rounded into shape as far as as overall makeup and I think that that’s been the biggest step that he’s made. NHL teams now see him battle for pucks more, and see him have an extra jump in his stride because of the extra power. He’s stronger on pucks. He protects the puck really well. So you take that with this hockey sense and the scoring that he had when he was a 15 year old kid when we listed him and you add those things in now- he’s a pro.”

Stefan is coming off a breakout regular season that saw him lead the Winterhawks with 50 goals and 51 assists for 101 points in 67 games.

He’s one of only five players to hit the 50 goal milestone and one of 10 players to hit triple digits in points.

But the 20-year-old is most proud of how his overall game has improved.

“I’ve been getting a lot more PK time,” Stefan explained. “And then I wanted to work on my defensive game, get better in my own zone- and I feel like I’ve worked on that. Then just my offensive production, I feel like that has been boosted this year.”

Finally, the call came.

Stefan may not have heard his name called at the NHL Draft, but he did earn a contract with the Edmonton Oilers, putting pen to paper on a three-year, entry-level deal on March 24, 2024.

“That was huge,” Stefan added. “That was a really proud moment for me and my family. Just all the hard work paying off, especially to not be drafted three years in a row.

My dad and my mom, they support me so much, and they just want to see me do well. At the end of the day, I just want to make them proud and they’ve sacrificed so much for me when I was younger. Making everything worth it for them was was kind of huge for me.”

Working through adversity has given Stefan a bounceback mindset that he’s bringing to Game 3 of the 2024 WHL Championship Series presented by Nutrien.

“The results we’ve built up throughout the whole year, I think, gives us confidence and we know we can beat any team in the league,” Stefan said of the challenge ahead. “The main message is just keep the belief in our group. And I know we have it. I trust every guy in our room. And I know that no one’s doubting themselves.”

With seven goals and eight assists in 15 playoff matches, Stefan is tied for second in points on Portland, highlighted by a hat trick against the Victoria Royals in the Western Conference Quarterfinals.

The Winterhawks will battle for their first win of the WHL Championship Series in Game 3 on Tuesday, May 14 at 8:00 p.m. ST at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.