Sens prospect Stuetzle to undergo surgery for fractured hand

Ottawa Senators blue-chip prospect Tim Stuetzle requires surgery after suffering a fractured hand in Germany, and he'll remain sidelined for six-to-eight weeks, the team announced Tuesday.

Stuetzle, 18, was the top-ranked European skater following last season, and Ottawa selected him third overall in the 2020 NHL Draft.

The injury occurred when Stuetzle collided awkwardly with another player during practice.

"I wasn't there, but according to the coach Pavel Gross when I talked to him after he said it was a drill they had and two players bumped into each other," said Mannheim GM Jan-Axel Alavaara, according to the Ottawa Sun's Bruce Garrioch.

"It was Tim Stuetzle and another player, and he was cutting his lane a little bit, and it wasn't a hard check or anything," Alavaara added. "They bumped into each other and it was an unlucky angle."

The 6-foot-1 forward was the youngest player in the DEL last season and recorded seven goals and 34 points over 41 contests.

Stuetzle also represented Germany at the 2020 world juniors, contributing five assists over five games.

Copyright (C) 2020 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.