2020 War At The Well

Stiga is a speedy shifty young player who is as versatile a player as they come. On day one of the tournament, Teddy was electric on forward making things happen constantly with his speed and shiftiness. He is not the biggest player, but for someone with Teddy's dynamic skating and shifty moves, it does not matter if he does not grow another inch he will be able to excel at the next level. Immediately your eyes draw a comparison to that of Johnny Gaudreau or Patrick Kane. He is a player so dynamic and evasive that his size does not matter at all. But as strong as Teddy is on forward, on day two he dropped back to defense after the 06 group lost a player due to injury and was equally impressive! He had an active stick and his speed allowed him to never get beat by defenders and kept some of the top 05's at bay all weekend long. Teddy was a beast making things happen springing forwards in on odd man rushes and controlling play from the backend constantly making plays. He looked like a young Torey Krug or Quinn Hughes just dominating offensively from the back end. On one goal in the semi-finals, Teddy caused a turnover, proceeded to lead a 3 on 1 rush, created a give and go with Monteiro and scored a highlight reel goal.

You could remove the name and number from Stiga’s jersey and still be able to identify him. There’s an element of excitement that Teddy tries to bring to every shift, often rooted in the pace he plays with and the frequency he tries high-end skill moves at full speed. He’s the type of player that wants to break a defensive structure apart with every play, sometimes trying a little too hard to do so, forgoing some of the safer plays along the way. This game embodied both, as Teddy went for the audacious plays where it made sense and played within the confines of the team when he was properly masked by the Swedish defense.

Stiga’s level of impact in a game can reach incredible heights when the competition succumbs to his second and third effort hustle plays. He’s a menace that’s sneaking behind players, lifting sticks, forcing players off balance, making them force plays a little too quickly. Considering he’s also one of the most dynamic players on the ice, once again, it’s hard to say he’s anything but a standout star in this game. A good nose to the net earns him a rebound goal, and he earned quite a few chances playing alongside Hagens.

Who is surprised that once again, Stiga is out here putting on a show as one of the NTDP’s best players. An early goal to break the 0-0 tie came off of his stick, finishing off a great pass from Cole Hutson. He followed that point up with the second period’s opening shift after with a great small area sequence with Hagens behind the net, giving James the space needed to set up Ziemer.

Teddy Stiga is another great player who deserves some love for the game he brings to the table. He is such a well-rounded player and his game can be whatever is needed at any stage of the game and it will be effective. He played with lots of energy and pushed the pace of play for his line, while also using that energy on the forecheck to get things going to unsettle the Canadian defense as they were attempting to exit their zone cleanly. Stiga is an intelligent player who knows where to position himself in the neutral zone to prevent breakouts from being easy for the opposition, and he also makes good decisions with the puck and allows for play to flow naturally by quickly playing the puck to the open man. He is such a great player and showed how effective he can be.

I made a point to look for Teddy in this game and I absolutely loved what I saw. When I talk about Team USA using spacing, well-timed passes, and just making positive team-style decisions to gain positive possession I think Teddy was a terrific example of that today. He was passing in flow, setting us players on the rush, moving pucks back the point, had some good chances off the rush, and simply played a smart and productive game. I think he’s another player where the production doesn’t match the current level of upside. I’d want this player on my NCAA team any day.