Ottawa Senators’ Tim Stutzle has shoulder injury, should be good for next season

Ottawa Senators center Tim Stutzle revealed during the team’s exit interviews that he currently has a shoulder injury.

Stutzle, 22, did not specify what caused the injury, just that he expects it to be healed by next season. He didn’t mention anything about surgery for the injury, which also good news on the severity of it and the likeliness that it will be healed by September. He also revealed that he suffered a wrist injury in the fourth game of the season, and played through that injury throughout the season.

The wrist injury in particular likely explains why Stutzle underperformed this season, as after putting up 90 points in 2022-23, he had just 18 goals and 52 assists for 70 points in 75 games. However, he actually had one more assist this season than 2022-23, only falling behind in points due to his goal scoring, so the wrist healing this summer will likely help bring his goal totals up going forward.

Stutzle was the third-overall pick for the Senators in the 2020 NHL Draft, making his NHL debut the following season. He’s since played four seasons with the Sens, and has currently been the highest-scoring player from his draft year.

This season was Stutzle’s first year of an eight-year contract with an $8.35 million cap hit, one he signed as an extension just before training camp in the 2022-23 season.

The Senators finish the season with a 37-41-4 record, which was only good enough for seventh in the Atlantic Division, and was 13 points behind the Washington Capitals for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Sens will look to end their now seven-season playoff drought next year by improving the team this summer. They enter the offseason with almost $13 million in projected salary cap space, with one unrestricted free agent and five restricted free agents currently on their NHL roster, including UFA Dominik Kubalik and RFAs Shane Pinto and Erik Brannstrom.