The Stecher Effect #3: Young Leader for the Prospect D
The entire NHL saw how big of a presence Ben Hutton grew to be, did it not? Here is Troy Stecher who earned himself an Alternate Captaincy on the North Dakota lineup! At 22 years of age, that is perfect.
Stecher is precisely the guy that the Canucks want to lead the likes of Tate Olson, Guillaume Brisebois, Carl Neill, and perhaps even Jordan Subban.
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For Subban, Stecher not only is a player he can look up to but also a source of competition. After leading the Canucks blueline prospects at the AHL level, Subban has enjoyed a monopoly on the production department on the Comets blueline.
Especially when Taylor Fedun went down with a hand injury and Alex Biega was called up to the Canucks after starting out the year as the Comets captain, Subban stepped up and enjoyed a full slate of opportunities.
Stecher will benefit Subban and vice versa, while the two lead this strong group of Canucks blueline prospects from the 2015 draft class.
However, as always, expectations should be realistic. The NCAA has just recently blossomed to produce some of the finest of the NHL while the CHL has history on its side. Speaking strictly on point production, Stecher’s final season with the North Dakota Fighting Hawks eclipses Ben Hutton’s finals season with the University of Maine.
B. Hutton 2014/15 (H-East) 39 GP / 9 Goals / 12 Assists / 21 Pts / .54 Pts per Gm
T. Stecher 2015/16 (NCHC) 43 GP / 8 Goals / 21 Assists / 29 Pts / .67 Pts per Gm
Sure, Hutton’s teammates did not include the likes of Drake Caggiula and Brock Boeser as Stecher did. But unless you have more advanced numbers to throw around, I would advise making the numeric argument that Stecher is better a player than Hutton is.
Next: The Stecher Effect #4: Opening the Gates to More NCAA