KITCHENER, Ont. — St. Louis Blues rookie forward Otto Stenberg knew early in life that his younger brother, Ivar, was a talented hockey player.
The Swedish hockey community found out just how good a couple years ago after Ivar, now 18, experienced a major growth spurt.
An even larger audience is about to see why the heady winger is in the running to go first overall at next year's NHL Draft. Ivar is following in his brother's footsteps, set to be a key player for Sweden at the world junior championship starting next week in Minnesota before joining Otto as a first-round pick next year — the elder Stenberg went 25th overall to the Blues in 2023.
"He's always been pretty good in his age. He has a lot of talent, he just started to grow pretty late," Otto, 20, said over the phone earlier this week before making his NHL debut on Wednesday against the Winnipeg Jets in St. Louis.
"He was pretty small when the other guys in his age group started to grow. When he started a year later (than many of his peers), he grew a lot and that made him so much better."
The five-foot-11, 183-pound Ivar Stenberg, who estimates he grew nearly half a foot two or three years ago, still is not the biggest or fastest player. But he's shown this season he's more than capable of competing against grown men.
Playing in Sweden's top professional league for the second year in a row, Stenberg is averaging nearly a point a game (six goals, 18 assists for 24 points in 25 games) with Frolunda HC. He's on pace to finish as the most productive draft-eligible player in Swedish Hockey League history — Daniel Sedin had 42 points in 50 games in 1998-99.
Stenberg was a healthy scratch for his team's pre-tournament opener against Canada here Wednesday because his spot on the squad is very secure. When Sweden opens the tournament on Boxing Day against Slovakia, he'll be front and centre.
He'll also be younger than most players, but Stenberg has no issues with that — thanks to his Swedish pro league experience and the fact he played several seasons with his older brother.
"I think playing with guys one year older, two years older, it helped me a lot," Ivar Stenberg said before Wednesday's game. "I (had) always been short and I needed to work on my hockey IQ to become better."
Frolunda GM and former NHL player Fredrik Sjostrom, like Otto, noticed a big difference in Stenberg's game once he grew.
It doesn't mean Stenberg is a punishing physical presence, but the added size has helped him in all aspects of his game.
"Not that he's overly big now either, but I think the last couple of years, he's really growing into himself and his body," said Sjostrom. "He's been skilled all the time, but I'd say the last year and a half it's really taken off."
Sjostrom says Nicklas Backstrom is a name people mention after watching Stenberg.
"I think some people here have made comparison to Backstrom just because of his smartness," Sjostrom said. "Nick was probably not the fastest guy either, but he was so in control. Nick was first and foremost a set-up guy, but Ivar can be a ruthless finisher as well."
Stenberg, while happy with his season, isn't satisfied.
"I think it's been good, but I always want more and always want better," he said. "I'm hungry, and I want more."
The world juniors will provide a chance for scouts to compare the two forwards most often mentioned as candidates to be picked first overall — Canada's Gavin McKenna and Stenberg.
Canadian defenceman Keaton Verhoeff, who has to secure a world-junior spot in camp, is also considered to be in the running.
Stenberg and McKenna did square off in the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, with Canada emerging victorious. "He's awesome," Stenberg said. "Saturday (when Sweden plays Canada in another pre-tournament game in London, Ont.) will be fun."
But Stenberg isn't treating the world juniors as a chance to make his case to be picked first. He shrugs off thoughts of any pressure in the draft chase.
"I want to go to a team who trusts me and believes in me. That's the main goal," he said.
Before that, though, he's excited about wearing the triple-crown jersey and trying to help Sweden win WJC gold for the first time since 2012.
"When I grew up, this was the main thing I was focusing on — to go to world juniors," said Stenberg, who sees Tim Stutzle as a current NHL role model. "It's really big in Sweden. I've always dreamed about it."
His father, David, also a former pro player, is scheduled to be in Minnesota for the tournament. The eldest Stenberg had another proud moment Wednesday when he watched Otto play his first NHL game.
Ivar figured he'd have one eye on his phone to check in on Otto while watching his Swedish team in the Kitchener stands. The two talk and text regularly, Otto said. He tries to watch all of Ivar's games with his old Frolunda team.
"Not advice for his game, but maybe when he played his first game in the SHL, I could talk to him about some guys who are good guys he can talk to and what to do in different situations," Otto said. "I don't want to say I teach him how to play. He knows how."
The mutual admiration is clear.
"I'm really proud of him," Ivar said hours before Otto's NHL debut.
Next week, Otto will have the same feeling when Ivar plays for Sweden at the world juniors.
"It's super special," Otto said. "It's maybe one of the biggest tournaments in national-team hockey. It's going to be fun to see how he's doing and how Sweden is doing. I think he's going to do well and the team, too. It's exciting. It's the best feeling ever to play for Sweden."
