Young Former 11th Overall Pick May Return to the NHL With One Specific Team

Back in the 2019 NHL Draft, the then Arizona Coyotes used the No. 11 overall draft pick on talented young defenseman Victor Soderstrom out of Sweden, but unfortunately, he didn't quite pan out.

In 53 games between 2020/21 and 2023/24, Soderstrom would tally just one goal and 11 points on a struggling team, and this season he headed back to Sweden after struggling to catch on at the NHL level.

For Brynas IF Gavle in the second tier of the Swedish Hockey League, Soderstrom has tallied a solid 9 goals and 37 points in 49 games played, and it's clearly got him thinking about a return to the NHL.

According to a report from Expressen, Soderstrom is likely to return to the NHL in 2025/26 after continued talks with the Chicago Blackhawks following the beginning of the SHL playoffs, and after he was acquired in a salary cap dump, it appears he could have a shot at making Chicago's roster.

In his last season in North America, Soderstrom put up 9 goals and 32 points in 62 games played for the AHL's Tucson Roadrunners, so while he may not automatically be handed an NHL spot, there's clearly talent there with the 5-foot-11 offensive minded defenseman.

At 24-years old, he'll have to deal with the talented players ahead of him like Sam Rinzel, Alex Vlasic, Kevin Korchinski and Artyom Levshunov, but after finding his game again in his native Sweden, there's no reason why the former first-round pick can't finally catch on at the NHL now.