Just a few days after being selected third overall in the NHL Entry Draft, Tim Stuetzle has received some bad news. The Ottawa Senators prospect will require arm surgery and will be out for six to eight weeks, his DEL team announced. Stuetzle suffered a broken bone in his arm during practice on Monday according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia. Senators GM Pierre Dorion released this statement once the news broke:
In consultation with doctors in Germany and with our own medical staff, it has been determined that Tim requires a surgical procedure to stabilize a fracture. The procedure is scheduled to take place in Germany later this week and has an expected recovery time of six to eight weeks. Our medical staff will remain in regular contact with Tim and his doctors as he begins his recovery through to the point that he is medically cleared.
Stuetzle, 18, is one of the players from the recent draft that is expected to challenge for an NHL roster spot immediately, though he was already training with professionals in Germany. He played 41 games for Mannheim last season, scoring 34 points.
Even if the recovery takes more than eight weeks, the Senators have time to make sure Stuetzle is at full strength before bringing him to North America. His DEL team explained to Garrioch that they will be working with Ottawa through the process, which should be complete long before the NHL training camp gets underway. Stuetzle goes under the knife on Wednesday and will face the first big challenge of his pro career.
Unfortunately, Ottawa is going to Ottawa.
I love dunking on Ottawa but wtf? This makes no sense.
“The Curse of Ottawa” strikes again!
Probably having an arm wrestling competition as melnyk can’t afford to buy gym equipment for the guys.