Senators choose Stützle with Alex Trebek twist
Top 5 picks for $1,000, Alex.
In the end, the voice of University of Ottawa grad and Jeopardy! star Alex Trebek Tuesday was the biggest surprise twist of all on what could end up becoming a crucial night for the Ottawa Senators franchise.
The Senators began the evening by going back in black, launching hope that maybe, just maybe, there will be a payoff for all those years at the bottom of the standings and the departure of all the former stars.
In the worst kept secret in Ottawa, the Senators (re)introduced black as their primary home colour, to go along with the previous announcement of a return to their former 2D Senators logo. In that respect, what’s old is new again, but if those changes help spark renewed interest in the organization from a new or lost generation, it’s definitely worth a shot. Being even bolder and making the retro, old-school, barberpoled, stylized “O” part of the main logo might have sent a louder message to a wider audience, but any kind of different look is good for a team trying to turn the page.
The uniform talk was just an appetizer, however, for the bigger meal that was to come: the announcement of Tim Stützle and Jake Sanderson with the third and fifth overall
selections, respectively, in the NHL entry draft. And it was about time. After months upon months of speculation and anticipation, fans desperately needed some names to hang their hopes on. It was the first time since 2000, when the New York Islanders chose Rick DiPietro and Raffi Torres, that a single franchise owned two Top 5 selections.
Like just about everything else in our days of Covid, the draft came without the usual flash and flair. No grand inhouse arena gatherings of players, families, friends and media. Instead, it was a virtual draft, with teams huddled in their own individual bunkers before announcing the names of the players who will carry the promise of winning a Stanley Cup for their organizations.
There was limited drama at the outset. The foregone conclusion was that the New York Rangers — who won the somewhat controversial draft lottery in the summer — would select Rimouski Oceanic and Canadian world junior championship star left winger Alexis Lafreniere first overall. The Rangers didn’t change that script, believing that Lafreniere will be ready to go as soon as Jan. 1, the new target date for the NHL to get the 2021-21 season underway.
Then came the Los Angeles Kings, who opted for Sudbury Wolves centre Quinton Byfield. With that selection, it was almost a given that Senators general manager Pierre Dorion would follow up by announcing Stützle with the next selection.
Not so fast. In a sharp marketing move, the Senators enlisted the services of Trebek to introduce Stützle — in the form of a question, of course — into the organization.
So, who is Stützel? He’s an 18-year-old who comes to the Senators from the Mannheim Eagles of the DEL, Germany’s top professional league. He’s 6-1 and 187 pounds and scored seven goals and 27 assists with Mannheim last season. In an ideal world, he would slot in as a centre for the Senators, but he could also end up on left wing.
It’s only natural that hype follows hope and, in some circles,, Stützle has been compared to Chicago Blackhawks star winger Patrick Kane.
Let’s hold the phone on that one for now. All Kane has done is score 389 goals and 633 assists in 973 regular season games, while adding another 50 goals and 73 assists in 127 playoff games, while also winning the Stanley Cup three times and the Hart Trophy, Art Ross Trophy, Conn Smythe Trophy and Calder Trophy.
Interestingly, Stützle will wear 88 in those new black Senators jerseys, the same number Kane sports with the Blackhawks, but he doesn’t need to skate into that pressure just yet. Stützle, incidentally wanted to wear number 8, but that was the number belonging to original, original Senator Frank Finnigan and is hanging in the rafters at Canadian Tire Centre, alongside Daniel Alfredsson’s number 11.
The immediate question is whether he can step directly into the NHL as soon as January. If there’s a bonus in drafting a European teenager, it’s that the Senators have the option of playing him with Belleville in the American Hockey League if he’s not deemed ready for the NHL.
After the Detroit Red Wings opted for Swedish winger
Lucas Raymond fourth, the Senators were immediately back on the clock.
This time, there was no Alex Trebek voice, just that of Dorion, who announced the choice of Jake Sanderson.
Sanderson, who scored two goals and 12 assists in 19 games with the United States national development team, was considered to be the best all-around defenceman in the draft. He’s also the son of former NHL speedster Geoff Sanderson.
Fans shouldn’t expect to see him right away. Sanderson will play for the University of North Dakota, which has become a farm team of sorts for the Senators. Fellow defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker, the Senators 26th overall selection in the 2018 entry draft, is entering his third season at North Dakota. Shane Pinto, the Senators 32nd overall choice in the 2019 draft, is also at the school.
It’s also the alma mater of current Senators defenceman Christian Wolanin, originally a 2015 choice by the organization.
As always, it will take years to determine whether the first round of the 2020 was a success for the Senators. What Tuesday provided was a chance for fans to chew on some names that provide hope of one day filling Canadian Tire Centre again, along with some colour and a surprise voice for good measure.