During the NHL’s media tour in Paris, France recently, Ottawa Senators forward Tim Stuetzle and his friend, one Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider, spoke with NHL.com/de’s Axel Jeroma regarding their encounters with Germany’s standard-bearer, Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl:
“I thought: Wow, what’s going on here?”
Tim Stuetzle and Moritz Seider talk about the games against Leon Draisaitl at the NHL European Player Media Tour
The games against Leon Draisaitl and the Edmonton Oilers were, for Tim Stuetzle and Moritz Seider, something pretty special. Both players discussed them during the short media tour in Paris.
“When I was admiring one of their power plays from the bench, I sometimes thought: ‘Wow, what’s going on here? It was no different for the guys on our penalty kill, because it was really crazy,” says Stuetzle, describing his impressions of the power play game from the Oilers, where Draisaitl and company regularly lit up their opponents. “When you’re against him on the ice, you don’t want to concede a goal. That’s always the most important goal,” explained the Ottawa Senators forward, referring to Draisaitl. “But it’s really hard to achieve that. He’s such a good player. It’s a lot of fun to watch him.”
During the 2020-2021 NHL season, when there was an all-Canadian North Division, the Senators and Oilers, and thus Stuetzle and Draisaitl, met quite often on the ice. “Games against guys of their class were very important for our team. We could learn fro that. Even if it went a bit too fast for us at times. In a game, I think they had four goals in the first ten minutes’ worth of play,” said the 20-year-old from Viersen.
Seider had the same experiences as Stuetzle in the duels against Draisaitl. “Those were tough games for us. I think he scored twice in one of them. He’s a special player. It was great to see him again,” the defenseman said, and he’s of course the recent winner of the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie.
For him, it was remarkable experience to meet two of the best players in the league in Connor McDavid and Draisaitl.
“When it (against the Oilers–editor’s note) didn’t go well, they pulled the team together. From that moment on, it became really difficult to defend, because both are so good and the chemistry between them is perfect,” explained Seider.
“If you take one of them out of the play, then the other one is free. Then they somehow find a way to pass the puck to themselves, and suddenly, it lands in the net. Like I said, those were definitely special meetings for me.”
Seider was happy about the development that Tim Stuetzle has made over the past season. “He’s made tremendous progress between last summer and this summer. I’m convinced that he has a fantastic season ahead of him. I trust that he’ll average a point per game,” said the 21-year-old native of Zell regarding the Senators’ left wing.
In his second NHL season, Stuetzle had 58 points (22 goals and 36 assists) in 79 games. The beginning of his career in the NHL was as promising as that of Draisaitl.
He doesn’t make comparisons between himself and the superstar of the Edmonton Oilers, however. “Everyone knows what Leon has already achieved in his career. Of course you look up to him. But I want to try to shape my own style, and develop my own personality,” he makes clear.
The fact that Seider had a rocket start in the NHL didn’t surprise the Senators forward, said Stuetzle. “I’ve known him from a long time. He’s incredibly cool. That’s why I knew he would come in and hit the ground running. His first season was great. He worked super hard. I told him that he could be a significant player for a long time. I told him to just go his own way. He’s in such a good mood, and really doesn’t need to worry about anything. He just has to play his game, and everything will be fine,” Stuetzle said.
Stuetzle revealed that he and Seider trained a lot together in the summer. “We saw each other practically every day [in Mannheim]. It’s good to have a guy like him around me, who’s also a bit older. In his head, he seems like a veteran at times. At the same time, you can always have fun with him.”
Leon Draisaitl was impressed with Seider’s debut season in the NHL. “He’s an outstanding young player who has a lot of potential. He understands the game over her and has worked hard,” the 26-year-old from Koln has said in recognition of his compatriot.
Draisaitl also believes that Stuetzle is on the right track. “He’s very talented and has some success early in his career,” he said. Referring to both, he added: “I hope that they do better than me and eventually overtake me.”
Draisaitl appreciates the fact that young German players like Stuetzle see him as a role model: “If that’s the case, then I think it’s great.”
