The St. Louis Blues are moving into a new era of hockey, with the younger players are their focus. The old core has just about been demolished, and a new group is forming to lead the charge for years to come.
One potential piece to that new core is Otto Stenberg. He made his NHL debut in 2025-26, and it went very well. In 32 games of action, he scored three goals and added seven assists for 10 points. Not too shabby for the recently turned 21-year-old forward.
But after what has happened in the past few weeks, there is a new obstacle in his way of making the NHL squad. No, it is not the influx of centers like Connor McMichael, Mason McTavish, or the drafting of Tynan Lawrence and Maddox Deganais.
This is a conundrum brought on by the drafting of his brother Ivar, who went second overall to the San Jose Sharks at the 2026 NHL Draft. How exactly does this affect the Stenberg on the Blues?
Let's talk about it.
Higher expectations than before
We have seen this time and time again with brothers in the NHL. Who is going to be named as the better brother when all is said and done? The Tkachuks, Brady and Matthew, are going to have that debate in a few years, as are the recently drafted Ruck brothers, Markus and Liam. Historically, only the Sedin twins, Henrik and Daniel, could be voted to a tie on who is better between them.
The Stenberg brothers are now the next to join this list. And that could cause some discomfort for Otto and the Blues. Now he has to face external threats from his teammates vying for a spot on the main roster and his brother's looming success.
Ivar was taking second overall and, for all intents and purposes, will very likely be suiting up for the Sharks in October this season. Otto might not, as his place in the Blues' future has not been directly assigned yet. The new pieces mentioned above in McMichael and McTavish are going to shift things around, as there are now four centers fighting for three spots behind Robert Thomas.
Otto Stenberg is going to have to fight a little harder to get to where his brother is right now. The time will come for him to be an everyday NHLer, as his initial run with the Blues was definitely enough for him to come back, but there are still so many more questions to answer before training camp begins.
Add us as a preferred source on Google