The 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft will be held June 28-29 at Sphere in Las Vegas. The first round will be June 28 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS) and Rounds 2-7 are June 29 (11:30 a.m. ET; ESPN+, NHLN, SN, SN1). NHL.com is counting down to the draft with in-depth profiles on top prospects, podcasts and other features. Today, a profile on defenseman Stian Solberg of Valerenga in Norway. NHL.com's full draft coverage can be found here.
It won't just be opposing forwards that will have to keep an eye out for Stian Solberg in the future.
Teammates will have to pay particular attention to him too.
Solberg, a hard-hitting defenseman, actually has a bit of a soft spot for the lighter side of the game.
"A prank? I just try to be annoying, like maybe throw a wet towel or just do anything ... put the shoelaces together. Just make them do some extra work and get mad," Solberg told NHL.com. "That makes me laugh.
"We just laugh at it. We have a great time."
Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, one of the top forward prospects in this year's draft class, has been both teammates and classmates with Solberg, so he can attest to the good-natured demeanor his countryman shows.
"He's a practical joker," said Brandsegg-Nygard, who grew up playing with Solberg and was teammates again with him for Norway at the 2024 IIHF World Championship. "He's done [pranks] to me many times. He likes to make jokes and have fun with the guys."
Fun might not be the adjective opponents would use to describe playing against Solberg, though.
Solberg (6-foot-1, 205 pounds) has a reputation for being difficult to play against, attributes he was able to showcase while playing with Valerenga in EliteHockey Ligaen, Norway's top professional men's league, and for Norway at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship and at the World Championship.
"Stian has a good size and plays a solid and reliable in all game situations," NHL Director of European Scouting Jukka-Pekka Vuorinen said. "He is a competitive and active player with strong work ethic. He plays hard and closes out on space with good four-way mobility. Likes to play the body and wins battles on the boards. Good toughness and box-out play in front of the net. He plays with high energy and is always very active.
"[It] could be said that he has a warrior soul."
Those qualities landed Solberg at No. 20 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of International skaters for the 2024 draft. It's a healthy climb from being a C-rated skater in Central Scouting's players to watch list in October, meaning he was expected to be a fourth- or fifth-round pick.
The climb wasn't without hard work, however, with Solberg playing catchup after an injury limited him to 20 games with Valerenga in the top league and in Norway's junior league last season.
"At the start of the year I was a little bit nervous," he said. "I hadn't played a lot the season before that because of a back injury. But it started off pretty good. I had a little down period before Christmas, and after Christmas it went really well. I played a lot, played good. My playoffs in Norway were pretty good.
"I know a lot of guys think Norway is not the best league but everyone can skate and everyone can work hard. It's a really competitive league. I think I did good."
Solberg, who will play with Farjestad in the Swedish Hockey League next season, had 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) and 47 penalty minutes with a plus-2 rating in 42 regular-season games, and nine points (two goals, seven assists) in 17 playoff games.
He closed his season at the World Championship, with three points (two goals, one assist) and a Norway-high 22:44 of ice time in seven games. The 18-year-old was named one of Norway's top three players as selected by the coaching staff.
"He's got some swagger," said Minnesota Wild forward Mats Zuccarello, a teammate with Solberg at the World Championship. "He's going to be a really good player if he keeps developing the way that he has. I'm really impressed with his game. He's got grit. He's got skill. He has that extra swag to him. He's kind of got it all. I think he's going to be a real good player.
"As long as he keeps being humble and working hard, I think he's going to be a real steal in the draft."
Solberg and Brandsegg-Nygard, No. 5 on Central Scouting's final ranking of International skaters, are vying to be the first player born in Norway to be selected in the first round of the NHL draft. Forward Marius Holtet, who was selected by the Dallas Stars in the second round (No. 42) of the 2002 NHL Draft, is the highest ever selection from Norway.
Each likely will eclipse Holtet's status at the draft, to be held at Sphere in Las Vegas on June 28-29.
Draft day, naturally, has been on Solberg's mind for a long time.
Trying to avoid any draft-related pressures this season has been no joke, however, even back home.
"It finds you in Norway," said Solberg, who also had two points (one goal, one assist) in five games at the World Juniors. "That's no problem. Social media is crazy. It always gets you. But I would say probably it's more ... hockey is a big thing in USA and Canada, but it's not the biggest thing in Norway. It's pretty big, but it's not the biggest.
"Maybe that's a good thing."
