The 2020 draft is highlighted by players like Alexis Lafreniere and Quinton Byfield, but there are many players ranked further down the list that have high-end talent and could be game-changers in the near future. Tim Stutzle is one of them.
Standing at 5’10 ½ and 170lbs, Stutzle, 17-years-old, brings a very elusive style of play on the ice. He’s got pace to his game, having great puck handling skills and dynamic skating ability.
Another…… Patrick Kane?
Stutzle is bigger than Kane in terms of size, but their playing-styles are so much alike. Both players pride themselves on moving the puck with quickness and control as well as having the ability to make plays with their elite vision.
He also has a knack for delaying passes to get the right lanes and being extremely patient especially on the power play. He likes to calm plays down, but he also has the ability to drive the play up and increase the tempo if he wants to. Having this ability allows him to confuse opponents when he’s on the ice because they don’t know which version of Stutzle they’ll see. Both are deadly.
Another one of his talents is his skating. Stutzle, a native of Viersen, moves around the ice with a lot of confidence which allows him to keep up with players, whether he has the puck on his stick or is chasing it. Stutzle’s lateral movement as well as his up ice skating abilities allows him to make plays at high speeds and allows him to fit into tighter areas knowing he has the agility and technique to perform these complicated maneuvers.
Both Stutzle and Kane have tremendous puck handling abilities. They can deke out opponents with ease and keep the play going with that skill. This allows them to be creative and bring a level of excitement to any given shift which is always a plus for the show factor of hockey.
Furthermore, both players have a high Hockey IQ’s. They both make plays look easier than usual and when that happens, it’s a showing of a high level of intelligence. They can carry the play if needed and have the “It” factor when it comes to sport.
He can’t stop producing
Stutzle has dominated play from a young age and manages to light up every tournament he plays in. At age 16, he racked up 55 points in 22 games playing in Germany’s U20 league and finished fourth in that league in scoring behind players who were at least one year older than him. In the tournaments between the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 seasons, Stutzle recorded 37 points in 20 games and was consistent throughout the four tournaments he participated in.
So far in 2019, he has 23 points in 25 games playing in a tough DEL league alongside bigger and stronger competition. He’s proving that he can play well with tougher responsibilities and more mature opponents.
Stutzle also produces in the playoffs. In the 15 games he’s played stretching three separate seasons in three separate leagues, he’s managed to accumulate a total of 22 points overall. Not only does he maintain a level of production above a power play goal, but he manages to drive the play and give his team reasons to keep playing. The drive to produce and drive offence is what makes Stutzle such a coveted player.
In the end, there’s still a lot of time before Tim Stutzle hits the ice in the NHL as his current contract with Adler Mannheim expires at the end of the 2021/22 season. He is following a very similar pro path to Russian right-winger Vasili Podkolzin who was drafted 10th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in 2019. Podkolzin, 18-years-old, also has some term left on his current contract in Russia.
Stutzle’s talent and offensive attributes are NHL ready, but he could use some more experience and conditioning playing against professionals. While we may not see Stutzle in the National Hockey League next season, he’s keeping us on the edge of our seats as the wait for his arrival in North America continues.