Arvid and Elmer Söderblom’s father, Martin, recalls his two future NHL players’ childhood in Sweden as one of competition that never went too far.

Maybe that’s what they led him to believe, but Arvid said that wasn’t the actual truth.

“I think it went over the line a few times,” Arvid said.

Ah, brothers.

“We had this little rink in the area where we live, sometimes, yeah, we would leave there like enemies and then we would settle it later in the day,” Arvid recalled. “But, yeah, sometimes, whether it was me that was cheating or him that was cheating, it would be some fights down there sometimes. I think that’s just how it is with brothers close in age, just battling and having fun and just competing. It was fun, for sure. And then, I don’t know if all the competitiveness has gone away.”

It hasn’t … and probably never will. But that’s probably also one of the reasons both are in the NHL — Arvid, 26, with the Chicago Blackhawks and Elmer, 24, with the Detroit Red Wings.

With just two years between them, they’ve had each other to push and pull for 20-some years.

Their development curves were also aided by playing opposing positions. Arvid, who was inspired by fellow Swede Henrik Lundqvist, chose to be a goalie. Elmer picked forward.

On top of that, their parents built them a makeshift hockey area, which was about 32 feet by 10 feet, in their backyard, where they could perfect their crafts against each other. When it was cold enough, they froze it over.

“I would put my gear on, and my brother would just shoot at me for hours,” Arvid said.

Elmer is the younger brother, but they were mistaken for twins because Elmer was just as tall as Arvid for a lot of their childhood. Arvid recalled being the taller one for a short period, but then Elmer hit puberty, and it was all over. Today, Arvid stands 6 feet, 3 inches. Elmer is 6-8.

As children, the Söderbloms met Hockey Hall of Famer and Swedish goalie Henrik Lundqvist. (Courtesy of the Söderblom family)

At Elmer’s size, the natural position would seem to be defenseman, but he showed a knack for scoring early on, and with Martin, who played professionally in Sweden, coaching the two kids growing up, he encouraged his youngest son to stick with forward.

“From the beginning, he liked to score a lot,” said Martin, who is a physical therapist for the Frölunda Hockey Club in Sweden. “That was his main thing. He liked to score and he did score a lot. I thought, yeah, OK, let him do that. He tried to play defense and he tried to be a goalie once or twice, but he liked to score a lot of goals and be a forward.”

Elmer’s route to the NHL went through Frölunda. When he showed some offensive promise on Frölunda’s under-20 team during the 2018-19 season, the Red Wings decided to use a sixth-round draft pick on him. He scored 29 goals in 36 games the following season in the under-20 league. With Martin on the bench, Elmer made his SHL debut that season, too.

Elmer broke out with 21 goals in the SHL during the 2021-22 season, and the Red Wings brought him to North America the following season. He bounced between the AHL and NHL his first three seasons and has been permanently in the NHL this season. He plays left wing on the Red Wings’ third line.

“Especially with a player like that, his size, and still can make plays and skate and all that,” Arvid said of his brother. “I think for him just to find his way in the league and find a good role on that team, I think he can be a great player there for years to come.”

Arvid’s NHL path was different. He went undrafted. He also made his Frölunda SHL debut with Martin on the bench, but Arvid wasn’t projected in the same way as Elmer had been. Frölunda loaned Arvid out to lower-division teams to get him playing time. In the 2019-20 season, Arvid, then 20, showed some promise in Sweden’s second division and had a .924 save percentage in 32 games. He got a full-time shot in the SHL with Skellefteå AIK the following season and had a .922 save percentage in 22 games.

The Blackhawks had signed European goalie free agents in the past, and they thought Arvid was only going to get better. They signed him to an NHL entry-level contract in May 2021. He spent time in the AHL and NHL for two seasons and has been in the NHL for the last three seasons.

“It was kind of cool, he kind of always just knew that he had potential and knew that he was good enough, so he kind of just stayed patient and (did) the work, kind of trust the process,” Elmer said of Arvid. “Kind of how I try to learn from him as well.”

Arvid helped set the standard for all his siblings. They also have a younger sister, Vera.

“Arvid has been the most disciplined of them his whole life,” their mother, Susanne, said. “I mean, really disciplined. He got upset if we ever suggested missing a practice. Can we travel maybe during Christmas? No, that ended many years ago. Arvid was the oldest, so he was really, really disciplined and dedicated and passionate about his thing, very meticulous. Just doing his thing every single day.”

Martin added, “And I think Elmer and Vera saw that and followed him.”

The Söderbloms: Susanne, front, and left to right, Arvid, Vera, Martin and Elmer. (Courtesy of the Söderblom family)

Vera has also excelled athletically, but she opted for basketball. She’s a 6-3 starting junior forward at the University of South Carolina Upstate. But growing up, she was roped into the brothers’ hockey competition.

“They put Vera … they geared her up in the goalie setup and they’d shoot pucks and some balls at her,” Susanne said.

Martin said: “It was a lot of competing in the family. … Who was the first to the car? Who was the first to whatever?”

Arvid was the first to the NHL. He made his season debut on Jan. 1, 2022. Elmer’s NHL debut came later that year, on Oct. 14, 2022. The brothers met in an NHL preseason game in 2022, when Elmer scored on Arvid. Their first NHL regular-season game together was earlier this season, on Nov. 9. Elmer had a prime opportunity to score again, but Arvid denied him by stretching out his right leg. Arvid joked he was going to make a picture of the save his phone’s screensaver.

“Someone sent me a picture of him coming in, like it’s the two of us in the picture, and he got the scoring chance there,” Arvid said. “I think that’s a fun picture, a good memory, but, no, I’m not going (to) put it as a screensaver.”

SODERBLOM STOPS SODERBLOM 👀

A huge save by Arvid on his brother, Elmer! pic.twitter.com/SjbJKAkAYI

— NHL (@NHL) November 9, 2025

The brothers could face each other again in Chicago on Saturday. It’s not yet known whether Arvid will start in net for the Blackhawks on Friday or Saturday with Chicago playing back-to-back games. It would almost be easier on their parents if they weren’t on the ice again at the same time.

“It was hard because you always want Arvid not to allow any goals and you want Elmer to score,” Martin said.

Susanne added: “I have a very clear strategy about that. First thing, I’m a mom. So my strategy is if Elmer is on the ice, he better score. And if Arvid is to let in a goal, it should be only Elmer’s. When they’re playing the same game or when they meet each other, I am not cheering for any of the teams. I’m cheering for my children. I’m a mom, so I’m allowed to do that.”

Even if the brothers don’t share the ice again this season, once was more than the family could dream. The brothers are still competitive, but they’re also still close, talk often and get together when they can. They want nothing but the best for each other.

“You kinda look back to those days when you were younger and you’re playing just for fun in the backyard or in the basement or wherever,” Arvid said. “Right then, your dream is to get to the NHL, but you never know if you’re gonna make it. And then for both of us to make it and play for historical teams, him on the Red Wings and me here, I think that’s pretty cool. Just having that experience (of playing each other) is gonna be something we’re both looking back at for the rest of our lives. We don’t take that for granted to play each other.”

Their parents don’t take any of their children’s accomplishments for granted, either.

“We are so super proud and in awe of what all three of them have accomplished,” Susanne said. “It’s very often, we look at each other and like, pinch me, what is going on? We’re so very proud.”