Ivar said watching Otto go through his own NHL draft year helped him understand what was coming — the interviews, the pressure, the meetings with teams, the World Juniors spotlight, all of it. Otto was selected 25th overall by the St. Louis Blues in 2023, so by the time Ivar’s turn came around, nothing really felt brand new.
The brother competition started way before the draft stage, though.
Growing up in Stenungsund, Sweden, Ivar and Otto competed in everything. Hockey, golf, soccer, floorball — didn’t matter. Somebody was winning, somebody was mad, and apparently the walls in their old hockey room took plenty of damage along the way.
That edge clearly did something.
Ivar went No. 2 overall to the San Jose Sharks in the 2026 NHL Draft and already signed his entry-level contract. The 18-year-old winger is coming off a massive season with Frölunda, where he put up 11 goals, 22 assists and 33 points in 43 SHL games. That was one of the best under-19 seasons the league has seen from a Swedish prospect.
He also showed up on the international stage, helping Sweden win World Junior gold for the first time since 2012. Stenberg finished that tournament with 4 goals, 6 assists and 10 points in 7 games, tying for the team lead in scoring.
Otto has already made it to the NHL, recording 10 points in 32 games with the Blues, but even he admitted Ivar’s rise happened faster than expected.
That’s the fun part about this story.
Otto helped show him the road. Ivar might end up taking it even further.
The Sharks are building something young and dangerous, and Stenberg looks like he could be a huge piece of it. A skilled winger, a high-end playmaker, a fierce competitor, and a guy who has been sharpened by sibling battles since he was a kid.
San Jose might have landed a good one.