Man of the week: Pontus Aberg

KHL.ru continues its weekly column. The hero of this issue is Pontus Aberg – the Swedish forward from Barys has just netted his first KHL hat-trick.

Pontus Aberg is having a strong start with his new team, Barys, with seven goals in the first ten games of the season, but it’s not his first stint in the League. Earlier, he lined up for Traktor in 2020-2021, without having a significant impact as he only signed ten goals for the Chelyabinsk side. This time, however, it’s different. While Barys didn’t have an exceptional first part of the season – the Kazakhs are in ninth place in the East – Aberg is one of the few bright notes for the franchise. His play with American forward Riley Barber is among the most efficient in the whole conference, and their strong offensive combinations will certainly give the team further chances to reach the postseason.

Early years

Pontus Aberg was born on Sep 23, 1993 – he just turned 30 – in Stockholm, the Swedish capital, where he started playing hockey lining up for the local FoC Farsta, a team in the southern side of the city, but he soon moved to Djurgardens, where he played in the Swedish junior leagues.

Aberg began then his journey in Elitserien with Djurgardens during the 2010–2011 season. Despite the limited role he enjoyed in the team, Aberg’s commitment to Djurgardens extended through the 2013–2014 season.

His early potential became evident during the 2011 pre-season tournament, the European Trophy, where Aberg played five games and notched two points. It wasn’t long before he earned his first opportunity on the ice during an Elitserien game, making his mark by scoring his inaugural goal in the Swedish top-flight league against HV71.

Following an impressive start to the 2011–12 Elitserien season, where he tallied five goals and three assists in the first fourteen games, Aberg emerged as one of the top candidates for the season’s Elitserien Rookie of the Year. However, that year, Djurgardens relegated, and Aberg followed the team down to the Allsvenskan for the 2012-2013 campaign.

In the 2013–2014 season, however, Aberg made a transition to play for another SHL club, Farjestad BK. With Farjestad, he had a breakout season, with 31 (15+16) points in 52 regular season games. Earlier, in 2012, the forward was drafted in the second round of the NHL Entry Draft by the Nashville Predators. Despite his talent, Aberg never made it to Team Sweden for the U18 or U20 WJC squads.

Move to North America

Following his breakout season with Farjestad, Aberg signed an entry-level contract with the Predators and embarked on his first North American season in 2014–2015, playing for the Predators’AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. During the 2016–2017 NHL season, Aberg made appearances in 15 regular-season games for the Preds, contributing 1 goal and 1 assist. Meanwhile, in the AHL, Aberg showcased his effectiveness by scoring an impressive 31 goals in just 56 games with the Admirals.

During a crucial juncture in the playoffs, when top-liner Ryan Johansen was sidelined due to injury in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals and it was confirmed that Johansen would miss the remainder of the playoffs, coupled with Predators’ captain Mike Fisher also being out, the Predators turned to younger players – including Aberg – to shoulder the offensive responsibilities. In Game 5, the Stockholm native made a significant impact by scoring the game-winning goal in Anaheim, leading the Predators to a 3:1 victory and a 3–2 series lead. Then, in Game 6 at home, Aberg played a pivotal role by assisting on 2 of Colton Sissons’ three goals, ultimately propelling the Predators to their first-ever appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals. He was consequently inked to a new two-year deal by Nashville. However, that season proved to be the most successful for Aberg in the NHL and in the next year, he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers.

The Swedish forward changed several NHL franchises in the following years, lining up for the Oilers, the Anaheim Ducks, the Minnesota Wild, and the Toronto Maple Leafs, but spending most of the time in the AHL. As an impeding free agent in the NHL, he signed a deal with Traktor Chelyabinsk for the 2020-2021 season, with his NHL rights being traded from the Leafs to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

First stint in the KHL

In Chelyabinsk, Aberg didn’t have his best showing, only scoring 23 (10+13) points in the regular season, failing to find consistency and being only the ninth scorer for Traktor, even failing to score any points in the playoffs. 

“I wanted to try something new, but I didn't have anything on the table from North America. Coming to Russia is something that I've talked to agents about in the past. It’s an opportunity I wanted to try—to see how the hockey is here, and if I can do well.

Traktor showed interest right away. I know that [Vityaz] Podolsk had my rights, but Traktor called my Russian agent and expressed a lot of interest. I think it just went from there. The process was a little bit longer than we would have hoped, because Podolsk had my rights. We had to work that part out, but after some time, it finally happened,” Aberg commented his move to Chelyabinsk in an interview with KHL.ru. 

And it was against Vityaz that did the forward score his first KHL goal on Sep 17, 2020. In December, he netted two for Traktor in a 3:2 win in Nizhekamsk.

However, following his debut season in the league, his contract wasn’t renewed, and he returned to North America, signing a deal with the Ottawa Senators. Once again, he was sent down to the AHL, and after 17 games with the Belleville Senators he returned to his native Sweden, playing 24 games for Timra.

European travels and return to the KHL

After his brief stint with Timra, Aberg moved teams again, signing in Czechia with BK Mlada Boleslav. However, he ended the season with the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers of the Swiss top league. He had a strong showing there, with 22 (10+12) points in as many games and helping the Swiss side reaching the playoffs, where they eventually lost to EV Zug, who won two consecutive titles in 2021 and 2022.

Following his strong performance with the Lakers, where he played with former KHLers Roman Cervenka, Michal Jordan, and Emil Djuse, Aberg returned to the KHL. This time, he signed with Barys – the Astana franchise had several changes during the summer, and currently the Swedish forward is one of the key players in the team’s offensive line. Andrei Skabelka will need Aberg’s offensive prowess to return to the playoffs.