Stenberg got McDavid's line before he got a five-on-five point

Ivar Stenberg's assignments have advanced faster than his five-on-five production. His all-situations ice time climbed from 13:35 in his opening game to 18:09 in his fifth; by the league's shift charts, 11:55 of his 15:02 at five-on-five against Edmonton came with Connor McDavid on the ice.

The 19-year-old has no five-on-five point through five games. MoneyPuck's season summary puts his on-ice expected-goal share at 33.8 percent over 68.8 five-on-five minutes, almost indistinguishable from San Jose's 34.3 percent through those games.

Stenberg played in Sweden last season, with no tracking available there and no previous NHL Edge season. The comparisons are this season's league pool and Michael Misa's own opening five NHL games last season, and five games is the whole sample. The promotion already amounts to an extra 4:34 of all-situations work between his opening and fifth games.

The ladder#

The NHL game log reads 13:35, 15:37, 13:45, 17:21 and 18:09 in all situations. The climb includes a dip, then his heaviest workloads. Across five games he is fifth among San Jose's 13 forwards in both all-situations ice time per game and even-strength time per game, by the league's stats feed.

Sheng Peng reported at San Jose Hockey Now on Oct. 7 that Stenberg moved from the second power-play unit to the first with Macklin Celebrini out. Ryan Warsofsky told Peng, "He's got patience on the half-wall. He can play both sides." Stenberg has played 8:11 of San Jose's 23:29 on the power play through five games, a 34.8 percent share.

Both of his points came away from five-on-five. Both were primary assists, on Tyler Toffoli's power-play goal against Los Angeles on Oct. 3 and Darnell Nurse's three-on-three overtime winner at St. Louis on Oct. 8.

The matchup#

Edmonton won 3-1 on Oct. 10, when Stenberg spent 11:55 of his 15:02 at five-on-five opposite McDavid, by the league's shift charts. MoneyPuck's game file has 0.32 expected goals for and 0.39 against with Stenberg on the ice, his best game by share in the opening five, at 45.2 percent over 15.0 five-on-five minutes.

The chance share#

MoneyPuck's season summary has 1.35 expected goals for and 2.64 against in Stenberg's 68.8 five-on-five minutes, with actual goals at 0-2. San Jose's share without him is 34.4 percent through five games, just 0.6 percentage points above his. His own seven attempts include four shots on goal, yielding 6.1 attempts per 60 minutes over those 68.8 five-on-five minutes.

MoneyPuck's game-by-game shares run 21.3, 41.7, 12.6, 43.7 and 45.2 percent, respectively over 13.1, 14.2, 12.1, 14.4 and 15.0 five-on-five minutes. His last two games are his best by share. NHL Edge places 38.7 percent of his 70:16 at even strength through five games in the offensive zone, against a league average of 41.2; his defensive-zone share is 42.2 percent against 40.4.

Faceoff starts describe only part of that territory. MoneyPuck counts eight offensive-zone, five defensive-zone and 21 neutral-zone faceoff starts, plus 49 on the fly, across his 83 five-on-five shifts.

The legs and the shot#

NHL Edge's percentiles describe this season's noisy early league pool, whose size the feed does not publish. Through five games in all situations, Stenberg's 20.72 mph maximum sits in its bottom fifth, at the 17.9th percentile against a 21.47 mph league average. He has no bursts over 22 mph and five between 20 and 22 mph, against a league average of 7.13 through the same early-season window.

His ground covered is nearer ordinary. NHL Edge records 9.79 miles per 60 all-situations minutes over 78:27 through five games, at the 57.4th percentile; his even-strength rate is 9.93 miles per 60 minutes over 70:16, at the 47.6th, against 9.94 leaguewide. All-situations distance rose with his minutes from 2.26 miles in the opener to 2.87 in his fifth game.

The hardest shot in NHL Edge through five games, all situations, is 78.98 mph, at the 50.5th percentile; average speed is 54.0 mph, at the 43.2nd. A maximum gets more opportunities with more games, so the comparison below keeps both rookies to five. Stenberg's five all-situations shots on goal rank at the 37.7th percentile, with two high-danger and three mid-range shots through five games.

The rookie beside him#

Misa is a centre, Stenberg a winger. Misa averaged 12:22 in all situations and scored three points, all five-on-five, through his first five NHL games. His 10 attempts and MoneyPuck share of 50.4 percent came in 51.2 five-on-five minutes; NHL Edge's five-game maximum was 21.90 mph. Stenberg received more minutes on a team with a worse chance share, with MoneyPuck putting San Jose without Misa at 49.0 percent through his opening five games, against 34.4 without Stenberg through his.

The arguments against me#

1. The club's five-on-five chance share without Stenberg is 34.4 percent through five games; the chance share belongs to San Jose as much as to its rookie.
2. His best shares came in his heaviest all-situations workloads, with 43.7 and 45.2 percent over 14.4 and 15.0 five-on-five minutes; the recent direction points upward.
3. Warsofsky praised patience and versatility, qualities these tracking measures do not score. Both of Stenberg's points are primary assists through five games.

No rating yet#

This season's Pine Net Rating does not exist yet for forwards. Stenberg also has no last-season hockey card, having played no NHL season before 2026-27.

The open Sept. 12 call concerns appearances in at least 11 of San Jose's first 13 regular-season games. Stenberg has dressed for five of five in 2026-27.

Sources: NHL Edge (2026-27); the NHL's game logs, stats feed, game sheets and shift charts; MoneyPuck's season and game-by-game files (2026-27 and 2025-26); Sheng Peng at San Jose Hockey Now (Oct. 7 and Oct. 8, 2026).