Brothers William & Victor Eklund Compete ‘Over Everything’

Could the San Jose Sharks unite the Eklund brothers?

Victor Eklund, the younger brother of William Eklund, is expected to be a first-round pick at the 2025 NHL Draft, where the Sharks will select twice with their own and the Vegas Golden Knights’ firsts.

Uniting the Eklund brothers, a la Jack and Luke Hughes, could be an exceptional addition to the San Jose Sharks. Victor Eklund tallied seven goals and 25 points in 30 Swedish junior games before being promoted to Djurgarden’s senior team in the Allsvenskan, the second-tier of Swedish professional hockey.

Victor is ranked 24th-overall on the Daily Faceoff’s early 2025 NHL Draft rankings, and received high praise from Steven Ellis after the World Junior Summer Showcase: “Eklund is just full of energy and is so difficult to beat in open space, and someone like that will be able to cause damage in the NHL…Expect Eklund to get drafted early this year.”

William, on Locked on Sharks, shared a similar assessment: “He’s good on his edges…He thinks the game real well. He’s a great shooter too. The biggest thing is he’s the biggest competitor [I’ve] ever met. He always competes.”

That competitiveness translates off-ice as well. Ellis reported that the Eklund brothers regularly compete in video games like EA Sports’ NHL or Fortnite. According to Victor, he’s better than his older brother.

I asked 2025 #NHLDraft Victor Eklund about what he likes to do with his brother, San Jose Sharks forward William Eklund.

They play EA NHL, Fortnite and Call of Duty.

I asked who was better at all three.

Victor: "Me. Easily."

— Steven Ellis (@SEllisHockey) August 3, 2024

The brothers’ constant competition has seemingly set them on similar paths, play for Djurgarden’s senior team as 17-year-olds, represent Sweden internationally, and likely both to be drafted in the first round of the NHL Draft. Victor, as reported by NHL.com’s Mike Morreale, takes some credit for William’s 45-point first full NHL season.

“I don’t think he would be that good today if we hadn’t been on each other every day,” Victor shared. “We were competing over everything, and we still do today, even though he’s four years older than me.”