ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA – If you were looking for Anton Frondell highlights during Sweden’s World Junior Championship pre-tournament play, there wasn’t much to go around.
Sure, he had a pair of goals against Switzerland. But the two quiet performances against Canada were definitely surprising – he had just two shots total.
But on Friday, when the tournament began for real? He was unstoppable.
The Chicago Blackhawks prospect had a whopping nine shots, and ultimately scored the tournament’s first goal on a blast of a one-timer in the second period. He finished with two points while dominating puck possession just about every time he hit the ice.
Frondell first appeared on the radar of NHL scouts thanks to his incredible one-touch release. He showed that multiple times in Sweden’s opener, forcing Slovakia to react in ways they couldn’t keep up with.
It took Frondell five opportunities to break the game open. But once he finally found a way to beat Alan Lenďák, everything changed.
“It’s a nice feeling when you see the puck go in,” Frondell said in a post-game media scrum, with a smile. “It wasn’t the first shot for me, so I would say it was relaxing.”
A natural center, Sweden put Frondell on the left wing to allow him to focus more on his dominant offensive zone game. Anaheim Ducks prospect Eric Nilson took the top middleman duties, and it seemed to have unlocked a level from Frondell that we haven’t seen in quite some time.
On the opposite wing was New York Islanders draft pick Victor Eklund, Frondell’s long-time partner and good friend. Like scouts have seen numerous times over the past few years, Frondell found Eklund in front for the 2-0 goal.
“I was just trying to rip the puck whenever I had the chance, and I was lucky that I scored one,” Frondell said. “It felt like that late in the game, Slovakia started to block me more. And Eklund was open, and it worked.”
For scouts disappointed about Frondell’s play in the month leading into the tournament, Friday felt like a new beginning. Most expected Frondell to be Sweden’s most important player, and he showed up against the Slovaks. But that was a game most expected to be one-sided, and it wasn’t. The real challenges lie ahead.
But it’s hard to watch clips back and not fall in love with his game.
“Could you imagine him getting passes from (Connor) Bedard on the power play?” one scout said. “Absolute insanity.”
Taken third overall in 2025, Frondell is one of the best prospects in hockey. Currently in his first year in the top Swedish pro league, Frondell has 10 goals and 15 points in 25 games, putting him on pace for 29 over the season. He had just three points in eight games prior to leaving for North America, and he even found himself playing under 10 minutes in a pair of games.
But playing against kids again, Frondell looks a step ahead of the rest. When he doesn’t have the puck, he’s finding ways to get himself into scoring position. He does an excellent job of getting himself into scoring lanes, especially on the right side. Frondell is fine as a playmaker, but you’d much rather have him firing shots on net.
“He shoots so hard and the shot is precise,” Swedish goaltender Mans Goos said. “He hides it well. He’s so skilled all around.”
Frondell is up to three points in two games, while leading the Swedes with nine shots. Sweden’s strategy has seemingly been to get the disk to him whenever they can. The more innovative teams will start to pick up on that, and Switzerland figured it out on Sunday – so much so, that he didn’t get a single shot on net. Frondell can be a bit hot and cold himself, but scouts have expressed overall satisfaction with his game.
Sweden hasn’t won gold just twice in tournament history – most recently in 2012. You can bet that’s weighing on Frondell’s mind. When the going gets tough, Frondell wants to be a leader – and he believes gold is a strong possibility.
“We have everything to win,” Frondell said. “(Belief) is the most important thing you can have in a group if you want to stand there with the gold medal.”
If Frondell can go like a scoring tear like he has done various internationally, Sweden will be set.
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