Fully healthy, Aron Kiviharju is back stronger and ready for the 2024 NHL Draft

Credit: Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff

ESPOO, Finland – Few players received a bigger cheer during the opening ceremonies of the U-18 World Championship in Espoo than Finnish defenseman Aron Kiviharju.

He’s become somewhat of a local star in Finland, having first been touted for his play when he was about 11 years old. Donning the captain’s C on his No. 12 jersey, he was set to begin his third attempt at winning gold at the famed event.

But it almost all came crashing down.

Midway through the game, Kiviharju was sliced by a skate along his right jawline, forcing him to leave for the changeroom. But before anyone even noticed he was gone, he was bandaged up and wearing a fresh No. 38 jersey with a blank nameplate before landing a big hit on an opposing Latvian forward.

He’s extremely lucky it wasn’t worse.

“I think it was the blade of the skate that cut it open, so we need to thank God that it was 5 centimeters [motioning] this way instead of this way,” he said. “I’ve got to be thankful for that.”

Kiviharju missed all but seven games of HIFK’s season in the top Finnish league due to an ACL injury suffered on Sept. 30. He was in the midst of his second year of Liiga action, trying to improve upon an average rookie season—albeit, an impressive one as an underaged defender in one of the best leagues in Europe.

That’s why having a good showing at the U-18s on home ice is so important to him. He knows it’s his opportunity to make up for lost time in front of all 32 NHL teams.

Kiviharju spent the time off focusing on the game’s mental and physical side. He wanted to get back to the basics – getting stronger, faster and smarter. And part of that was staying positive while watching your teammates play without you, especially in a year where so much is on the line.

“Half a year out of the field there is a long time, so now you just have to enjoy the game and enjoy the fun of hockey,” Kiviharju said. “I tried to learn a lot of things about hockey and that life is more than just hockey. I learned to appreciate more that I’m healthy.

“If you play one bad game at some point in the season that doesn’t mean that much anymore.”

Kiviharju – a smaller player at 5-foot-10 – also worked on building more upper-body strength. Size hasn’t been a huge concern for him, but adding a bit more bulk to his game is still a big positive. According to IIHF roster sheets, Kiviharju has gained 15 pounds this year compared to last spring, going from 157 to 172.

“I’ve never been the toughest or the biggest guy, so that was a good chance for me to get some more work, and some more strength to the leg that wasn’t injured,” Kiviharju said. “I wanted to fix the one that I had surgery with, too, so that it will never bother me anymore.”

Kiviharju registered an assist in a 3-1 win over Latvia on Thursday, his first meaningful game since Sept. 30. He had two assists against Norway the next night but was held off the scoresheet against Slovakia on Sunday. Coach Marko Kauppinen hasn’t wanted to rush Kiviharju by overplaying him, with the defender averaging exactly 20:00 a night through three games. In contrast, he never played fewer than 24 minutes as a Draft+1 defender last year, and while ice time wasn’t made public in 2022, he manned the top pairing again there as a double underage.

Taking a minor step back was understandable this time around, but it’s not like he hasn’t been impactful. According to SportContract, Kiviharju has an expected goals-for percentage of 82, and a Corsi-for percentage of 75. Sure, the competition hasn’t been overly challenging, but he’s been the best among Finnish defenders, with at least 18 minutes played per game.

“He’s looking good and moving well—things you like to see,” a scout said. He’s still trying to regain his confidence and get back into game rhythm, but the raw talent clearly never left him.”

Kiviharju has an innate ability to get himself out of trouble with the puck. He’s an excellent skater, especially under pressure along the blueline. He’s manipulative with the puck in the same way that makes Lane Hutson so difficult to read as an attacker.

“His hockey IQ, how he sees players on the ice, he’s so good,” said Konsta Helenius, considered to be the top Finnish prospect for the 2024 draft.

An excellent tournament isn’t going to suddenly jump Kiviharju up 15 spots in the draft rankings. Daily Faceoff kept him in the first round all season long, while other scouts think he could fall lower due to all the missed time and the associated unknowns. But this event could prove to scouts that he never missed a beat and perhaps even improved in other areas.

The Finns have high hopes heading into the playoff round. They’ll face the United States for first place in Group A on Tuesday before the quarterfinals kick off Thursday. With it being on home ice, there’s so much pressure to perform. So far, so good, but there are still great lengths to go if they’re going to make a serious run at gold.

But if they do, you can bet on a fully healthy Aron Kiviharju being a big part of that.

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Fully healthy, Aron Kiviharju is back stronger and ready for the 2024 NHL Draft

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