2020 NHL re-draft: Tim Stützle, Jake Sanderson give Ottawa one-two punch

In the final part of our series looking back at recent draft classes and seeing how my order of those players has changed, we conclude with the 2020 NHL Draft. With the most time between now and then of the four classes we’ve done, we would expect a lot to change and a lot more firm answers to be coming on who the real players are.

There was a clear top three going into the 2020 draft, led by Alexis Lafrenière and then a debate for second best between Quinton Byfield and Tim Stützle. In the years since the draft, all three remain excellent players who project to have long, productive NHL careers. Stützle has separated from the pack though. He is such an elite skater, with a ton of natural skill and offensive instincts to go with a strong compete level. He looks like a true long-term star forward.

It was a banner draft for Ottawa, as they picked the top two players in the draft in Stützle and Jake Sanderson. Sanderson may not be an ideal PP1 type of defenseman, but he’s shown more offense early on in the NHL than some of his bigger backers could have hoped for to go with his great skating and defending.

Lafrenière had his best NHL season to date including a great playoff run for the Rangers. His so-so skating held him back initially as he needed time to gain strength and adjust to NHL pace, but now that he has, his elite skill and hockey sense can take over.

This was a great draft for Carolina. Their first-round pick Seth Jarvis developed well into an important part of their lineup. He’s small, but full of speed and energy, has very good offensive skills and can play in the hard areas of the ice despite his size. Alexander Nikishin has yet to play an NHL game, but given his dominance in the KHL, I’m more than comfortable rating him this highly. His toolkit is unique given his big frame to go with strong mobility, skill and a highly physical brand of hockey. He has every trait you want in an NHL defenseman and when he does eventually come over, I expect him to have a long and productive career.

Anton Lundell isn’t the flashiest player in the world, but he has a Stanley Cup and has played real minutes on a contender in recent years. The debate in his draft year was how much offense he would have as his skating and skill didn’t truly stand out, but he always played up levels and excelled. He has shown enough offense versus men to go with his strong two-way play to look like a legit big-minute NHL center.

Brock Faber is one of the biggest risers from this age group, as he’s become a true top-pair defenseman in the NHL who just got paid a lot of money. He’s an excellent skater and competitor, whose offensive output was way higher than expected in the NHL than what he had shown as an amateur.

JJ Peterka has been very good as a pro. He’s a highly skilled winger who skates well and can score, but his compete has allowed him to hold his own versus NHL defenders despite his size. Jamie Drysdale’s stock has fallen a bit after he was so highly touted in his draft year. He’s still the elite skater we saw in junior, but the offense hasn’t come in the NHL as hoped even if he does move the puck well.

Luke Evangelista and Mason Lohrei were both picked in the second round but have looked quite good as pros and could have significant NHL careers. Evangelista fell due to his size and skating, but he’s shown to have legit NHL skill and sense on top of playing hard and getting to the hard areas to create offense. Lohrei was a re-entry defenseman who tantalized due to his skill in a big frame, but there were concerns over his skating and defending. He’s shown himself to be not only skilled but very skilled, so he’s been able to overcome those skating concerns by just how many plays he makes with the puck.

Alexander Holtz has been one of the bigger letdowns so far from this draft. He was a very exciting player to watch due to his skill level and ability to score goals from range. He could pull you out of your seat, but his game lacked pace and he plays too much on the perimeter. The result was his skill didn’t translate to the NHL like some hoped it would.

(Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic. Photos: Joshua Sarner / Icon Sportswire, Richard A. Whittaker / Icon Sportswire, Chris Tanouye / Freestyle Photography / Getty Images)