Sudbury Wolves loan Peterborough Minor Hockey product Chase Stillman to team in Denmark
With the Ontario Hockey League season not scheduled to start until February, the Peterborough minor hockey product is looking to stay sharp in his NHL draft season
Peterborough’s Chase Stillman isn’t sitting around waiting for the Ontario Hockey League season to begin.
The Sudbury Wolves have loaned Stillman to Esbjerg in Denmark’s top pro league. He is training with both their men’s and U20 teams, said Stillman’s agent Paul Capizano of Quartexx Management.
He’s among a growing number of OHL players being loaned to European teams on condition they return prior to the start of the OHL season if it goes ahead as scheduled Feb. 4.
Stillman arrived in Denmark on the weekend and will likely start by playing for the U20 team with an opportunity to join the men’s squad, said Capizano.
“We got a couple of calls from teams in Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Austria and the fit worked out with Esbjerg. They have Adam Cracknell, who the Edmonton Oilers have put on loan there. It’s a very good league. If you look what’s gone on in Denmark, they’ve developed some very good players the last couple of years.
“With COVID-19, it’s one of the safer places to be, as well.”
He said Stillman, who is in his National Hockey League draft year, wanted a contingency plan in case the OHL doesn’t play.
“We wanted to be prepared in case there wasn’t a season and be a bit more proactive,” Capizano said.
“We were starting to talk to teams around NHL free agency about some of our players who might not get jobs in North America and want to go to Europe,” he added.
“You talk to GMs and they ask what’s going on in the OHL and do you have some young guys who might want to play over here in our system. We’re asking the same type of questions. I got the call from the Danish team out of the blue. I know he’s made a good impression.”
Stillman is rated a B prospect by NHL Central Scouting, as a potential second- or third-round pick, and the draft was a consideration, said Capizano. The NHL has scouts in Europe and North American scouts can access video from Denmark. “Chase wanted to play. He’s a rink rat. He grew up with a brother who plays in the NHL and his dad played. He’s doing all his school, too. It’s not like he’s forgot about his schooling. He’s a couple of credits ahead of graduating.”
Although he’s just 17, Capizano believes Stillman will play games for the men’s team.
The six-foot-one, 180-pound right-winger was an OHL First Team All-Rookie last season, scoring 13 goals and 34 points in 58 games with 63 penalty minutes and an even plus-minus rating.
“(Esbjerg) did their homework to use up a permit to bring a kid over to their senior team,” Capizano said.
“If he just plays for the U20 team and practises with the senior team, it’s a great life experience and then he can get back here and play. He’s hoping (the OHL) get to play,” he added.
Stillman drove the process and both the Wolves and OHL signed off on the loan, he said.
It’s a complicated process to secure a visa, get permission to travel to and enter Denmark, take the necessary COVID-19 tests and protocols and get permission from hockey federations. Stillman couldn’t be reached for comment.
So far, no Peterborough Petes have sought a loan to Europe other than potential overager Liam Kirk, who lives in England and is playing in Sweden. “We don’t have anybody right now who has an opportunity over there but that’s not to say things couldn’t change,” said Petes GM Mike Oke.
“One of the challenging things in Europe as I understand it is a lot of the leagues right now have seen quite a rise in cases and various leagues are making adjustments.”