“It’s amazing,” he said. “I remember watching in ’06 when Sweden won that gold and this is something that everyone is looking at. Imagine being on a team representing the best of the best. So it’s something you always looked to, and with COVID and with all the years the NHL did not go, I didn’t know if I’d have the chance to go.”

Wennberg wasn’t picked to play for Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off last season, but he was on standby during the tournament as a potential injury replacement. So he figured he would be the bubble to make the Olympic team when this season began.

“There are so many good players,” he said. “I knew it was me and a few other guys. Obviously, I wanted to have a good start to the season and with the role I’m playing, it’s being a bottom-six guy, whatever they choose, PK, power play, face-off, whatever they need. So they just said, ‘Keep doing that and we’ll see in January.’”

Hallam and team Sweden’s management, headed by general manager Jose Boumedienne, liked what they saw and thought Wennberg’s intelligence and versatility will be valuable at the Olympics.

“When he started this year, the way he has played this year both offensively and defensively, we just feel he’s a player we can put into pretty much every role out there,” Hallam said. “He can play on the power play, on the PK. He can play fourth line. He can play top six. He can also play on the wing.

“And he’s a mature, smart person you want to have around you in the room, too.”

That’s been a big part of the Wennberg’s value to the Sharks as well. In his 12th NHL season after being selected by the Blue Jackets with the No. 14 pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, he has 407 points (111 goals, 296 assists) in 844 NHL games with the Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, Seattle Kraken, New York Rangers and Sharks and 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 58 playoff games.

But Wennberg’s value goes beyond statistics; he has been a steadying presence centering San Jose’s second line behind Macklin Celebrini and perhaps produced more than anticipated when he was initially signed to a two-year, $10 million contract as an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2024.

“He’s been rock solid for us,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “He plays a 200-foot game. I think his game has improved too over the years here, and this year he’s taken a nice step. He made the Olympic team for Sweden. He’s transporting pucks more than he has, holding onto pucks more, creating a little bit more offense to his game. Instead of being almost like a shutdown center, he’s kind of evolved more.

“In that 2C (role), you’ve got to drive a little offense, and he’s done a good job of that.”

In addition, Wennberg has provided valuable experience and a veteran example for a Sharks team with a talented young core up front, including Celebrini, 19, Will Smith, 20, Sam Dickinson, 19, Michael Misa, 18, William Eklund, 23, Collin Graf, 23, and Yaroslav Askarov, 23.

Warsofsky said Wennberg’s presence has been “critical” for San Jose centers Celebrini, Smith (before he was moved to wing) and Misa.

Warsofsky uses video clips of Wennberg as a teaching tool for Misa, the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft who is learning how play center in the NHL on the fly during his rookie season.