Stuetzle's return depends on NHL, Team Germany

The video of Tim Stuetzle posted on Adler Mannheim's Instagram account Tuesday morning indicated he has taken another step in the right direction.

Skating at the club's training facility under the watchful eye of former San Jose Sharks centre Marcel Goc, who is working as a skills development coach for Mannheim after retiring from his playing career with the Eagles, the 18-year-old Stuetzle is closing on a return from the surgery he had to repair a broken hand last month.

That means the Ottawa Senators' No. 3 overall pick in the NHL draft in October should be healthy enough to suit up for Team Germany at the world junior championships taking place from Dec. 25 to Jan. 6 in Edmonton and Red Deer.

“He's not in a team practice yet but he has been skating with Marcel Goc,” Mannheim GM Jan-Axel Alavaara, a former Buffalo Sabres' scout, told Postmedia Tuesday. “They're skating together every day. I'm not sure how far they are in their puck drills, but he's skating every day and he's on the ice with some pucks.

“I have a hard time seeing that he's passing and shooting yet, though.”

Still, Stuetzle had a six- to eight-week recovery time frame when he had the surgery and he's on track to report to Team Germany's training camp in Fussen Dec. 6. He had the procedure on Oct. 15 after suffering the injury during a drill in Mannheim and it appears he's going to be ready to roll in North America.

“The doctors and the physiotherapists say he's on track,” said Alavaara. “He's dedicated to what he's doing and he has a goal to get back as soon as possible.

“His work ethic has never been, and will never be, a problem.”

Players and staff at the get-together in Germany will remain in a bubble for two weeks before they travel to Canada. The whole tournament is being played in two hubs so there will be strict testing rules for COVID-19 in place.

Now, if by chance the NHL and the NHL Players' Association find a way to get a deal in place that would allow training camps over here to open in December, then the possibility exists Stuetzle could be in Ottawa in mid-December. Given the current climate of the negotiations, that feels like a long shot, and even if camp is on the Senators would have to decide if it makes more sense for Stuetzle to play in the tourney.

Discussions on an entry-leave deal are in the early stages, but first the organization has to secure his release from his contract in Mannheim. Those talks are taking place but there's no guarantee there's even going to be an NHL season.

Alavaara said a determination on Stuetzle's release will be made when the NHL season is settled.