Wild Prospect Aron Kiviharju Signs Multi-Year Contract Extension In Finland

Finnish defenseman Aron Kiviharju, 19, has agreed to a two-year contract extension with IFK Helsinki, the Finnish Liiga club announced on Tuesday.

Kiviharju was projected early to be one of the top picks of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft and made HIFK’s roster as a 17-year-old but suffered a horrible ACL injury after just seven games that cost him the rest of the 2023-24 season. He was ultimately drafted in the fourth round by the Minnesota Wild.

This season, the 18-year-old is a regular in the team’s lineup, playing top-four minutes and recording 16 points in 50 Liiga games. But the highlight of his season so far was the IIHF World Junior Championship, where he showed an international audience that he’s fully recovered from his injury, captaining Finland to a silver medal.

“Very good feelings – I have been very satisfied with the two years I have spent at HIFK,” said Kiviharju. “The first season went as it did due to injury and now it is important to have continuity in a familiar, good development environment. It was an easy choice to stay here.”

“Aron is having a very promising season,” said HIFK head coach Ville Peltonen. “Offense has always been his strength and now his defensive game has become much more solid. Overall reliability is heading in the right direction. We look forward to seeing his growth continue.”

Back in January, Kiviharju mentioned his performance on the NHL-sized rink gives him confidence in returning home to the Finnish league, stating, “I know that the things I can do on a small rink, I can also do on a big one.”

He had options this summer and some speculated he might go overseas, possibly to play in the AHL for the Iowa Wild, but Kiviharju is showing patience with this decision. After all, in two years he will still be just 21.

“Honestly, the goal is to play well here and help the team succeed,” he said. “After that, the goal is to attack the North American leagues.”

“It’s great that ‘Arska’ sees this environment as the best place for him to develop,” said HIFK sports manager Janne Pesonen. “Aron has clearly stepped up to a big role in the team this season. When there have been a lot of injuries, Aron has been able to step up to a bigger role, which bodes well for the future. Aron has committed to the process one step at a time and this season has been a great example of what it has brought. I believe that the importance of moderate development will only grow in the future.”

Another promising young defenseman on the team is 22-year-old former Montreal Canadiens prospect Petteri Nurmi, who is rumored to be headed to North America next season. Besides Nurmi and Kiviharju, the team also has Petteri Lindbohm on defense and Leo Komarov, Jori Lehterä, Iiro Pakarinen and Kristian Veselainen up front.  

With two games remaining in their Liiga regular-season schedule, HIFK sits fourth but could still finish as high as second or as low as sixth in the standings.