GERMANY: Tim Stutzle, LW/C, Adler Mannheim (2020)

Even for those who had Tim Stutzle on their watch lists when he was 15-years old and competing for Germany internationally, the astronomical rise he has enjoyed in this, his draft year, has been nothing short of phenomenal. That he committed to the University of New Hampshire as a 15-year old in 2017 surely raised a few eyebrows among true future-watchers, but the decision to go pro this season in Germany rather than to possibly head over to the USHL or even Canadian juniors also had a few in the hockey community scratching their heads.

They are scratching them no longer. Stutzle’s season with the Adler Mannheim has set new precedents. Only two players in the history of the DEL have scored more as a 17-year old, namely Marcel Goc and Marco Sturm. Still, neither of those two had a better points-per-game average than the .83 PPG Stutzle accumulated this season. It makes one wonder what he might have achieved had an illness not prematurely ended his WJC tournament and slowed down his return to the DEL thereafter.

More importantly, rare is the player who brings such a dominating skill set mixed with high-end skating and such an intense compete level. Such players are destined to succeed, and these attributes will see Stutzle taken extremely high in this summer’s draft. What won’t be talked about though, but which are crucial aspects in indicating almost certain future success, are his work level and coachability. Stutzle is not a player who simply concentrates on flashing his exorbitant skill set, but one who works in all three zones, just as much with and without the puck. His motor just never seems to power out. You will see him diving to block shots, working his tail off on the backcheck, and hounding opponents who dare to take the puck for a spin.

His positioning along the left-wing board on the power play, which has led to uncountable offensive opportunities, has shown his keen ability to work within the framework of a game plan. He plays and thinks both within and outside of the box, making him a weapon few opponents can put a grip on. In short, Stutzle has shown himself to be as about as complete and ideal a forward prospect as anyone in the business could wish for. His draft position will indicate just that.

Tim Stützle of Adler Mannheim during the CHL ice hockey game between Djurgården and Adler Mannheim on September 8, 2019 in Stockholm.
Photo: Simon Hastegård / Bildbyrån /

Skating - Be it acceleration, be it twists and turns, be it balance in gliding or be it pure straight away speed, Stutzle can do it all at an excellent level. Agile and shifty, his skating enables him to distance himself from opponents in tight spaces and stay ahead of the game, setting him apart from most all peers in this draft class, much less his competition in the DEL. At times, it looks absolutely effortless and when one observes what his feet are doing while his hands conduct their magic, he is simply graceful. Another aspect that sticks out considerably is what he does with pucks and passes that land in his skates as he is constantly able to move the puck with his feet to his stick in no time flat, hardly losing a step in the process. Crossovers and hops lead not only to an above-average acceleration, but have also allowed him to sidestep almost all physical attack from his opponents. The term “born with skates on” was invented with players such as Stutzle in mind. Grade: 65

Shot – We have not seen Stutzle as a goal-scorer to date, but that probably has much to do with his frequent tendency to pass, deke, and create for others. When he has been in a prime scoring position, he has displayed an incredibly precise wrist shot. Give him time and he will pick the corners, often displaying a slingshot motion in his wrister. Several of his goals came off of shots so quick, it was hard to determine how he had gotten he puck to his blade in the first place. Despite his offensive accolades this season, he only scored 7 goals in 42 DEL games, and 2 in 8 Champions Hockey League games, without scoring at the WJC. We have also seen very little in the way of a slapshot, which has, to be fair, been irrelevant for a player who moves through traffic and creates at the level Stutzle does. On the other hand, he has had some nice one-timers along the way, which he gets off with aplomb. All in all though, he has not been much of a shooter up to now. Grade: 50

Skills - Of all the nice things written about Stutzle up to now, this is where he most makes his mark on the game. All the vision, all the movement, all the instincts – they all culminate right in his hands, which are as slick as they come. It’s one thing to see things in advance and read plays, it’s another to actually execute – and that’s what Stutzle is capable of doing all day long. The feathering of passes through legs, behind his back, and over hordes of sticks has been the single-most reason he has been able to thrive at the pro level in the manner he has. He simply has it when it comes to getting the puck from A to B in spots allowing his teammates to best make use of their goal-scoring prowess. And it seems to come with a regularity rarely seen in a player this age or any other.

Of course, a player who can thread the needle to this degree can usually stickhandle his way around a phone booth, and Stutzle is no exception. Deking his way past opponents in tight areas has opened incredible avenues of opportunity, both for him and his teammates, allowing Stutzle to set up his colleagues in just about every fathomable situation. He practically specializes in setting up players for one-timers and tip ins. Put simply, the hands are elite and combine with his feet and athleticism to ensure a package of skill that few players possess. Grade: 70

Smarts - Stutzle plays the type of game that often has you thinking he has eyes in the back of his head. He sees incredible portions of the ice and seems to have a keen sense of putting pucks where players will be in three seconds as opposed to where they are now. The amount of successful no-look passes he has completed is daunting. He also has a very sound ability to be where pucks are coming, often showing a foresight for what is taking place that simply isn’t evident in many players. He knows when to be economic in his movements and when it’s time go all out. His defensive positioning will need fine-tuning as he matures, but everything involved with moving the puck and creating offense right from the neutral zone on out is already available in spades. Quite frankly, he reads the game at the kind of level that allows one to think he will eventually belong to the elite group of thinkers in the NHL. Grade: 65

Physicality - Playing in a men’s league filled with established pros, some of whom are twice his age, many of whom were NHL draft picks along the way, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Stutzle hasn’t been throwing his weight around trying to knock people through the boards. But he has done some aggressive forechecking and has no problem pushing and shoving as he sees fit. And any player who has the puck on his stick as much as Stutzle will be a target, so he has been standing up to physical abuse all year long, continuing to create and pass his way out of any possible jam. Furthermore, he is able to maintain balance in the corners while under attack and also quickly jump back up in the event that he is knocked down, winning a very high percentage of his puck battles in the process.

That he hasn’t shied away from traffic at any point, having improved bit by bit in regularly sidestepping on-comers, certainly is a statement about both his mental and physical fortitude. In light of the hands and feet Stutzle possesses, it is impressive how there is no shying away from any portion of the ice and almost all perimeter play is just a prelude to dicing up the opposition on the way to or through the slot, which almost always opens up new passing lanes. This lack of physical fear will make things all that more interesting on North American ice. Grade: 50

Overall Future Projection (OFP): 61