UNH Commits Update 10-26-18: Spotlight on Stützle, Margel & Stevenson

Tim Stützle 2020 UNH Commit

Will Margel 2019 or '20 UNH Commit

Chase Stevenson 2019 UNH Commit

This is the first "UNH Commits Update" of the 2018-19 season - a series which began in October, 2011. In that first update, I highlighted Andrew Poturalski and provided the scoring statistics for all the players committed to play for UNH. At the time, Poturalski was 17 years old and playing for the Buffalo Junior Sabres in the Ontario Junior Hockey League. He went on to play two seasons with UNH and was a Hobey Baker Finalist as a sophomore. Poturalski then signed a free agent contract with the Carolina Hurricanes organization. To date, he has played two games in the NHL and has scored 116 points in 173 games with the AHL Charlotte Checkers. Is there another Andrew Poturalski caliber player in the current crop of UNH commits? Stay tuned.

Player Spotlight - Tim Stützle

Last season, Tim Stützle was the fifth leading scorer in the regular season of the Under 19 German Development League (DNL). As a 15/16-year-old forward, he tallied 18 goals and 29 assists for the Mannheim Young Eagles (Jungadler Mannheim U19) in 25 games and 4 goals and 4 assists in 5 playoff games.

Early in the 2018-19 season, Stützle has picked up right where he left off. Over the first 14 games of the DNL U20 season, he has scored 12 goals and 22 assists and is the league's leading scorer.

This highlight video shows Stützle's 7th and 8th goals of the season - he is #8 in the Young Eagles' white jersey. In the first clip, he steals the puck behind the opponent's net, carries it through the neutral zone and passes. He then steals the puck again in the offensive zone, wheels down the slot, and wrists it between the goalie's pads. The final clip shows Stützle get tripped up in the neutral zone, then receive the puck in the offensive zone. After setting up his teammate for a shot on goal, another teammate centers a pass to him in the low slot, and he buries it:

Player Spotlight - Will Margel

Earlier this week, I posted this profile of UNH's newest commit Will Margel. Over the weekend, Margel and the Selects Hockey Academy at South Kent School U18 team competed in the playoffs of the Beast Tournament Series. The competition featured some of the top midget hockey programs on the East Coast.

Selects Academy began the playoffs as the 10th-ranked U18 team in the nation. In the opening round, Selects Academy U18 downed the 4th-ranked Yale Bulldogs U18 4-3 in OT. In the semis, Margel scored 2 goals, including the game-winner as SAU18 beat the Neponset Valley River Rats U18 (#3 National Rank) 6-1. Margel capped off the playoffs with another game-winning goal in the 3-1 win over the Springfield Rifles U18 (11th-ranked) in the finals. Margel lead the Beast Playoffs in goal-scoring (3) and finished tied for 2nd in scoring (3). On the strength of the Beast Series Championship, the Selects Academy at the South Kent School U18 team moved up to the #8 team in the country.

In the overall Beast Tournament Series, Will Margel totaled 9 goals and 5 assists in 10 games. Although he played in 2 or 3 fewer games than many of the other players, he finished as the second-leading goal-scorer and the leading scorer. Overall, Margel has scored 17 goals and 13 assists in 26 games with the Selects Academy U18 team. He is the team's leading goal-scorer and scorer.

Player Spotlight - Chase Stevenson

2019 UNH Commit Chase Stevenson is off to a fast start in his third season in the British Columbia Hockey League. The 19-year-old, 5'11", 170 lbs., left-shot forward has scored 8 goals and 9 assists over the Surrey Eagles' first 19 games. He leads the team in goal-scoring and is tied for 6th in the BCHL. Last season, Stevenson tallied 12 goals and 11 assists in 40 games. He missed games in December and January due to a lower body injury suffered at the World Junior A Challenge selection camp.

As the Alternate Captain of the Eagles, Stevenson has been playing center and left wing. He is the center for their first power play unit. Last Sunday, Stevenson earned the #1 Star in a 5-4 overtime victory over the Victoria Grizzlies on the strength of 2 goals and 3 assists. He set up the game-tying goal late in the third period. These video highlights show both goals and the key assist:

2018-19 Statistics

NOTE
The statistics for the commits, presented in the following table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2019 Commits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2019. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ If a National Letter of Intent has been signed.
~ The year the commit and UNH coaches originally targeted for enrollment in UNH.
~ How old the commit would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ The commit's performance in recent seasons as well as injuries.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.

Player	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM
2019 Commits
Lucas Bahn 9/11/99 (D)	West Kelowna Warriors	BCHL	16	0	6	6	2
Nolan McElhaney 4/22/99 (D)	Omaha Lancers	USHL	5	0	0	0	2
Chase Stevenson 1/13/99 (F)	Surrey Eagles	BCHL	18	8	9	17	31
2019 or '20 Commits
Will Margel 3/16/01 (F)	Selects Academy 18U	Overall	26	17	13	30	12
		USPHL 18U	-	-	-	-	-
		BEAST Series	10	9	5	14	8
Connor Sweeney 5/5/00 (F)	Lawrence Academy	NE Prep	-	-	-	-	-
	Islanders Hockey Club	NCDC	1	2	0	2	0
Marek Wazny 2/21/00 (F)	Maryland Black Bears	NAHL	14	1	7	8	6
2020 Commits
Aidan Curran 1/22/01 (F)	NH Jr Monarchs	NCDC	14	2	10	12	12
Liam Devlin 1/7/01 (F)	St. Sebastian's	NE Prep	-	-	-	-	-
	Boston Jr. Eagles	EHF Selects	10	3	5	8	8
Zack Jones 3/31/01 (F)	Boston Bandits	NCDC	14	2	7	9	4
Tim Stützle 1/15/02 (F)	Mannheim Young Eagles	DNL U20	14	12	22	34	24
	Team Germany U17	Intnl	-	-	-	-	-
2021 or '22 Commits
David Sacco 1/3/02 (F)	Lawrence Academy	NE Prep	-	-	-	-	-
* = Signed National Letter of Intent

News & Notes

United States Hockey League:

~ 2019 Commit Nolan McElhaney experienced a lower body injury in the Omaha Lancers' game against the Fargo Force on October 12th. He was placed on the injured reserve list and is out of the lineup indefinitely.

New England Prep School Hockey:

~ Three UNH Commits are planning to play New England Prep School hockey this season. Connor Sweeney and David Sacco are at Lawrence Academy and Liam Devlin is at St. Sebastion's School. Their season begins in late November.