Wild Prospect will play in Liiga despite being Drafted in CHL

Wild prospect Aron Kiviharju will play the upcoming season in the Liiga despite being drafted in the CHL.

Wild prospect Aron Kiviharju was recently drafted in the CHL Import Draft but has been confirmed to The Hockey News that he will play in the SM-liiga for HIFK in the 2024-25 season. 

Kiviharju, 18, missed a lot of hockey during his draft year which led to him dropping all the way to the fourth-round in the 2024 NHL Upper Deck Draft. The Wild were happy to draft him where they did. 

Even at pick 122nd, Kiviharju is excited to prove to the Wild he still can be the player he was before his torn knee cap injury. 

He was recently drafted by the Moncton Wildcats with the 97th overall pick in the CHL Import Draft. But Wild Director of Player Development Brad Bombardir confirmed that Kiviharju will go back to the Liiga to play rather than the CHL. 

“Our plan right now would be for him to go back there. HIFK is a heck of an organization," Bombardir said. "They’re a legendary organization in Liiga and treat the players well, develop players, they’ve been known to develop players and for him to be back there playing and continue to get more minutes and build his game back because he was out with injury last year for quite a long time and he came and played a little bit at the end of the season there. It’ll be good for him. 

"It’s a good environment to be back there and around the surroundings that he knows and a team that’s going to play.”

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