It all started in the ECHL for Logan Thompson.

After a circuitous path through juniors and university hockey, Thompson eventually landed with the Adirondack Thunder in 2018-19, making his pro debut that season. The following season he joined the South Carolina Stingrays.

It was his 23-8-1 mark with a 2.25 goals-against average and .929 save percentage with the Stingrays that really seemed to get him on the NHL’s radar. Not long after, the Vegas Golden Knights signed the Calgary-native to a two-year, entry-level deal, making his NHL debut in 2020-21.

Now? He’s an NHL All-Star, representing Vegas and the Pacific Division in the most recent installment of the league’s mid-season classic, held this year in Sunrise, Florida.

Finding this much professional hockey success came as a bit of a surprise to Thompson, he says, but he learned an important lesson along the way.

“Just believing in yourself and never stop working,” he said. 

“There was a lot of times where I was really close to just quitting and giving up, but that competitiveness in me never went away. That was the biggest thing, just to never stop working hard for what you want.”

Even after that brief debut in March of 2020, Thompson was still ticketed for the American Hockey League the next year, where he spent the first half of the season with the Henderson Silver Knights. But, after a January call-up, he relied on that work ethic to accumulate 19 wins in his first 35 NHL appearances, and earned his All-Star Game trip.

“When I got the call this year saying they wanted me to attend, I was shocked and a little surprised, but really thankful for the opportunity,” he said. 

“I wasn’t thinking about it during the regular season until this break, but just sitting around and enjoying it, it’ll sink in for sure.” 

Thompson stopped four of the seven shots he faced for the Pacific in his ten-minute stint, sharing the net with fellow ECHL alum Stuart Skinner, and joked that it might be his last appearance given his save percentage on the night. However, he said that getting selected was a nice confidence boost for him, especially after he wasn’t sure what the news was going to be when he got the call in the first place.

“You get that scary call from (Vegas GM) Kelly McCrimmon or the text saying ‘call me please,’ and your heart drops,” he said. 

“But it was good news, so that’s how I found out. But this was never on my radar at all. There’s so many talented goalies around the league, and I’m just happy to be in the NHL.”