Stützle takes on alternate captain duties for Germany, adding to what's already been an outstanding season.
Team Germany has announced its leadership group for the upcoming Olympic men's hockey tournament in Italy, and not surprisingly, Ottawa Senators centre Tim Stützle will be a major part of it.
On Monday, Stützle was named an alternate captain as he skates for his national team for a seventh time. He's been to the World U18s twice, the World Juniors twice, and the World Championships twice, but this will be his first Olympics.
Edmonton Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl will wear the “C” for Germany, while Detroit Red Wings defenceman Moritz Seider joins Stützle as alternate captains. The Germans will open preliminary-round play this Thursday against Denmark, kicking off what they hope will be another strong showing on the international stage.
Stützle and the Germans feature plenty of high-end talent at the top of their lineup, and could prove to be a handful for some of the traditional powers.
Back in North America, the 23-year-old is in the midst of an outstanding NHL season with the Senators, leading the club in scoring, and it isn’t particularly close. With 28 goals, Stützle is on pace for his first 40-goal season, and currently holds a nine-goal and 12-point lead over Drake Batherson, who sits second on the team in both categories.
"He's been unreal all year, I think," Batherson told the media last week. "He's having a great season. He creates so much every night. He can skate out there for a minute and a half straight at the same speed, which is very impressive, which leads to a lot of chances for him. I'm excited to see what he can do over at the Olympics, and we'll be watching him."
Still just 23, Stützle is just entering the prime years of his career and already well-established as the Senators’ offensive catalyst. He's only in year three of an eight-year contract worth $8.35 million annually, and while that makes him the highest-paid player on the roster, he's only a year or two from making that deal look ridiculously club-friendly... if it's not already.
Stützle’s growth away from the puck has been one of the biggest developments this season. He comes to the rink now with what seems like a new level of seriousness, routinely being more physical with a stronger commitment to defence.
Senators head coach Travis Green has noticed the evolution.
"It's not surprising that he's putting up points," Green told the media last week. "But he's doing it the right way. He's going to hard areas. He's playing the game. He's not cheating the game.
"And when you do that, good things happen."
As Batherson mentioned, another standout element of Stützle’s game is his speed and conditioning. Both were on full display in Ottawa’s pre-Olympic finale, a 2-1 overtime victory over the Philadelphia Flyers.
During the extra frame, Stützle skated end-to-end multiple times, both defending and attacking. He and linemate Brady Tkachuk both got away with getting caught up ice, but while Tkachuk appeared visibly fatigued on the backcheck, Stutzle busted his behind to try and get back.
When the Flyers missed the net on their 2-on-1, the puck rimmed all the way around to Tkachuk, who was still way back at centre ice. Stützle, still flying Energizer Bunny-style, transitioned back up ice, took the pass from the Captain, blew past him, then past Canadian Olympian Travis Sanheim, and then past Flyers goalie Dan Vladar for the game-winner.
I'm currently winded just describing it.
As he prepares to represent Germany in his first true best-on-best tournament, it's no surprise he's been assigned to their leadership group. As we've seen in Ottawa this season, Stützle is the kind of player now who changes games, leads by example and makes everyone around him better.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News
