Tim Stützle is giving the Senators exactly the kind of start that turns a good season into a dangerous one.
Ottawa is off to an 8-4-0 beginning, and the 24-year-old centre has been at the heart of it. Through 12 games, Stützle has piled up 8 goals and 8 assists for 16 points, which leaves him tied for 11th in NHL scoring. His eight goals are tied for seventh in the league.
The production is moving him into rare company, too. Stützle now has 425 points in 459 games, all before turning 25.
After Ottawa’s win over the Florida Panthers, TSN noted that he had passed Leon Draisaitl for the most career points by a European-trained player before age 25. With a January 15 birthday, he still has a chance to move past David Pastrnak (427), Anze Kopitar (434), Mats Sundin (437), and potentially Ilya Kovalchuk (466).
Most career points by a European-trained player prior to age 25:
624- Jaromir Jagr
529- Alex Ovechkin
513- Jari Kurri
466- Ilya Kovalchuk
437- Mats Sundin
434- Anze Kopitar
427- David Pastrnak
423- Tim Stutzle (Via 1G-1A in tonight's 5-1 @Senators win vs FLA)
422- Leon Draisaitl pic.twitter.com/AMXRZxneLf
- StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) October 22, 2026
For Stützle, the eye-opening part of this season hasn’t just been the numbers. It’s been the constant shuffle around him.
He has already skated with Andre Burakovsky, Warren Foegele, Drake Batherson, Nick Cousins, William Eklund, Claude Giroux, Stephen Halliday and Fabian Zetterlund, which has made Travis Green’s job a moving target at centre. Even with that turnover, Stützle has kept producing.
The line of Stützle, Giroux and Zetterlund has started to show real bite, at least by the numbers. That trio carries a 95% xGoals% and an xGoals against of 0.1, a sign that the fit is beginning to click offensively. If that combination sticks, Stützle’s point total could keep climbing.
He’s also doing more than driving offence. Stützle is taking more faceoffs and is winning 54% of them so far this season.
He’s been used on PK2 as well, and he already has a shorthanded goal. His defensive metrics are average at the moment, but that may be tied more to Ottawa settling in as a group than to anything on his own ledger.
The tools have always been there: the shot, the hockey sense, the skating, and the willingness to be coached. Since Green took over behind the bench, Stützle has become a more complete player rather than just an offence-first one.
His scoring touch has stayed intact, but he’s also stronger on the puck, falling less often, winning more battles along the walls and in the corners, and delivering hits more consistently. And when he gets the chance to turn that skating loose, he can separate from defenders in a hurry and create clean looks.
Tim Stützle buries his 8th off of a great pass from Zetterlund!! #GoSensGo
I'm telling you... keep the faith in Zetterlund. He's a player. pic.twitter.com/7zqormipgW
- Everyday Sens (@EverydaySens) October 24, 2026
That mix is why the idea of Stützle as a top-20 player no longer feels far-fetched. He’s producing as both a scorer and a playmaker, and while a 54-goal, 54-assist pace over 84 games is probably out of reach, it shows the kind of level he’s threatening to touch. Even if that exact pace doesn’t hold, he looks set up to post career highs.
If Ottawa keeps winning, Steve Staios may decide the roster deserves another boost up front to put beside Stützle in the top six. And if the Senators keep this pace, they’ll likely be in the playoffs again and better positioned to push past the first round, with Stützle right at the center of it.
In Other News...
Thomas Chabot Could Change Everything For Ottawa's Blue Line
Thomas Chabot was back at full practice Monday, a welcome development for a Senators blue line that has spent much of the early season trying to piece itself together. For Ottawa, the timing matters just as much as the news itself, with a five-game road trip looming and the defense needing as many stabilizing pieces as it can get.
The bigger intrigue is what the group could look like if the Senators finally get some health luck in one place at the same time. Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub are both in the conversation as well, and the possibility of having all three available would give Ottawa a very different look than the one it has had to use so far. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Open Tough Trip With One Big Issue Hanging Over Vegas
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Ottawa, meanwhile, is still waiting for its captain to come back into the mix, which keeps a little extra weight on the group as the trip begins. Thomas Chabots return is drawing close, and the Senators will be eager to have his presence back on the blue line soon, especially with the schedule now asking them to handle a challenging first stop without him. Vegas has its own boost coming with Mitch Marner back in the fold, adding another layer of intrigue to a game that already has enough questions attached to it. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Prospects Are Forcing A Bigger 2026 Debate Early
The Senators prospect pool is starting to make its own noise well before anyone is ready to turn the page to 2026, with three young forwards already pushing their way into bigger conversations. Adam Nemec has been driving offense for Sudbury and is set to suit up for Slovakia at the World Juniors, while Jonas Lagerberg-Hoen has opened his season with Leksands IF and earned an invite to Swedens Five Nations Tournament as the next roster decisions get closer.
Jaxon Cover has also given Ottawa reason to watch closely, piling up points with the London Knights and putting himself in the mix for Canada at the international level. His status still needs to be confirmed, but the early production from Cover, Nemec and Lagerberg-Hoen is the kind of development that can force a front office to think ahead sooner than planned, especially when the pipeline starts producing players with national-team traction attached to it. [Read more 🡒]