Blues first-round pick finally signs entry-level contract

The Blues were one of the busiest teams on draft day in 2023, boasting three first-round picks. One of them had yet to sign his entry-level deal, but that’s changed Wednesday. Otto Stenberg, who was drafted 25th overall, has inked his three-year rookie contract, the club announced. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Stenberg, 19 later this month, was one of the higher-rated prospects heading into 2022-23 but saw his stock drop throughout the year due to an underwhelming showing offensively in the Swedish junior circuit. He failed to hit the point-per-game mark in 29 games with Frölunda HC’s club in the J20 Nationell, not normally indicative of a first-round caliber forward.

He got back on teams’ radars with an electric showing at the 2023 U18 World Championship, racking up seven goals and 16 points in seven games for the Swedes with a +13 rating as they took home the silver medal. He was named the tournament’s All-Star team after leading them in scoring.

Stenberg’s post-draft season went much better. The well-rounded offensive talent settled in as a full-time professional, recording six points in 31 games in an extremely limited role with Frölunda in the Swedish Hockey League. He spent a small portion of the season on loan to BIK Karlskoga of the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan, where he lit things up with four goals and nine points in nine games.

He returned there for their SHL qualification tournament, posting five goals and seven points in 12 games as Karlskoga upset second-place Södertälje SK in the quarterfinals but lost their semifinal series to eventual champions Brynäs IF. The 5-foot-11 pivot also had a strong showing at this year’s World Juniors, finishing third on the team in scoring with nine points (five goals, four assists) in nine games.

Since Stenberg will still be 19 when the calendar flips to 2025, his ELC will slide to 2025-26 if he plays fewer than 10 NHL games next season. If so, the contract will expire in 2028 instead of 2027. He’ll be a restricted free agent upon expiry in either scenario.

Stenberg now joins Dalibor Dvorský and Theo Lindstein as 2023 Blues picks under contract. The pick used to select him was acquired from the Maple Leafs in last year’s Ryan O’Reilly trade. St. Louis has been busy in the past few days, inking Swedish free agents Samuel Johannesson and Marcus Sylvegård to entry-level contracts, as well as 2021 draft pick Simon Robertsson.