Kiviharju building profile for 2024 Draft at World Junior Summer Showcase

PLYMOUTH, Mich. --Aron Kiviharju doesn't have overwhelming size, strength, or skating ability, by his own admission.

But the 5-foot-9, 170-pound defenseman is a top prospect for the 2024 NHL Draft because of an off-the-charts hockey IQ that allows him to maximize every facet of his skill set.

"Aron has like a computer in his head," said Lauri Mikkola, Finland's coach for the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship. "He plays really smart all the time. His offensive game, how he plays under pressure, how he always finds a good way to come out [of the defensive zone]."

Kiviharju's strength is his offensive ability. The 17-year-old had 20 points (two goals, 18 assists) in 22 games with TPS' team in Finland's junior league last season. He also made his debut in Liiga, the top professional league in Finland, with three assists in 12:56 of ice time in 21 games for TPS.

At the 2023 IIHF World Under-18 Championship, he led Finland defensemen with seven points, all assists, in five games.

During the 2023 World Junior Summer Showcase he's been at the point on Finland's top power play.

"My strengths are absolutely playing with the puck and making decisions with the puck, playing in an offensive way with the puck," Kiviharju said.

But he wants to be known more as a two-way defender. At his size, Kiviharju relies on his skating, quick stick and body positioning to slow opposing forwards.

"I have to use my head and make smart decisions there because I'm not the biggest, not the strongest, not the fastest guy there," he said. "I have to play smart with my stick and use my body the right way. You just have to use your head in many situations."

That includes studying some of the top defensemen in the NHL for things he can add into his game, among them Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning and especially Adam Fox of the New York Rangers.

"Makar's edge work is great to look at and you see him in the offensive zone walking on the blue line," Kiviharju said. "Hedman, he's defending pretty well. He's also big (6-7, 244), but he's defending really good with his stick. Adam Fox, probably he's a little bit similar as me. Not the biggest, not the fastest, but he's making smart decisions with the puck and that's the thing that I've tried to look at with his game."

Kiviharju also gets advice from his father, Jani Kiviharju, an amateur scout for the Arizona Coyotes.

"I've learned a lot about the NHL [from him]," Aron said. "I'm asking a lot of things of him because every year it's getting closer and closer to the dream of getting to the NHL."

The father and son relationship is strong, despite being tested when Jani coached some of Aron's minor hockey teams.

"He wanted me to get better, and he asked a lot of me in every practice," Aron said. "And I was fine with that. I'm very thankful for those years that he coached me, but at some point, it's not fun anymore, so that was probably like 11 or 12 when he stepped out of my age group and started to coach some older guys."

The foundation of Aron's developmental years is paying off now. He signed a two-year contract with HIFK in Liiga on June 5, and should have a significant role there.

"They haven't promised anything, but they will give me a great chance and I'll have many games to show that I can take that spot from the seven playing defensemen on the roster," Kiviharju said. "So they'll give me a good chance to play."

He'll also be a prime player for Finland at the World Juniors, with Mikkola expecting Kiviharju to be a top-four defenseman for the tournament. Kiviharju said his goals for the season are to improve his skating and work on the details of his defensive play, but his intelligence and offensive ability already have him marked as one of the top players at his position available for the 2024 draft.

"Kiviharju has high hockey IQ and passion for the game," Janne Vuorinen of NHL Central Scouting said. "He really wants to get better on a daily basis and is a very mature kid. He reads the game really well and has the ability to set the tempo of the game when on the puck. He has good vision and passing ability, moves well at the point and can run the power play effectively. He's a bit smallish but uses his stick well defensively to steal the puck."

Photos: Rena Laverty/USA Hockey