Rodrigo Ābols (born 5 January 1996) is a Latvian professional ice hockey forward for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Ābols was selected in the seventh round, 184th overall, by the Vancouver Canucks during the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.
| Rodrigo Ābols | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Born |
5 January 1996 Riga, Latvia | ||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 187 lb (85 kg; 13 st 5 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams |
Philadelphia Flyers Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL) Dinamo Riga Örebro HK Rögle BK | ||
| National team |
 Latvia | ||
| NHL draft |
184th overall, 2016 Vancouver Canucks | ||
| Playing career | 2014–present | ||
Playing career
editDuring the 2014–15 season, Ābols skated for both Dinamo Riga of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and HK Rīga of the Minor Hockey League (MHL). He made his KHL debut on 27 December 2014 with Riga, whom his father, Artis Ābols, coached.[1]
Ābols joined the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League (WHL) for the 2015–16 season. In 62 games, Ābols registered 20 goals and 49 points. During the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Ābols was selected in the seventh round, 184th overall, by the Vancouver Canucks. Ābols split the 2016–17 season between the Winterhawks and the Acadie–Bathurst Titan of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Ābols skated for Örebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) during the 2017–18 season. While on loan, he also played for BIK Karlskoga of HockeyAllsvenskan. With his rights expired from the Canucks, he continued his tenure with Örebro HK in the 2018–19 season, increasing his production with 18 goals and 26 points in 45 games.
On 28 May 2019, the Florida Panthers signed Ābols to a two-year, entry-level contract.[2]
Approaching his second season under contract with the Panthers, on 3 August 2020, Ābols returned to Sweden to begin the 2020–21 season on loan with his former club, Örebro HK. He returned to the SHL with the North American season delayed until mid-November due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] On 13 January 2021, Ābols was released by the Florida Panthers.[4]
Following four seasons in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), Ābols returned to North America after securing a one-year, two-way contract with the Philadelphia Flyers for the 2024–25 season on 16 June 2024.[5]
Personal life
editĀbols is the son of Artis Ābols, who also played ice hockey and has been the head coach of Dinamo Riga and Lada Togliatti of the Kontinental Hockey League, and Zemgale of the Latvian Hockey Higher League, as well as assistant coach of the Latvia men's national ice hockey team.
International play
edit| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing Latvia
| ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
 |
2023 Finland/Latvia | |
Ābols participated at the 2013 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships as a member of the Latvian national junior team. He made his senior international debut in Prague at the 2015 IIHF World Championships.
He represented Latvia at the 2023 IIHF World Championship where he recorded five goals and two assists and won a bronze medal, Latvia's first ever IIHF World Championship medal.[6]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2011–12 | SK Rīga 16 | LAT U18 | 22 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | SK Rīga 17 | LHHL | 14 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | HK Rīga | MHL | 44 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 34 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 | ||
| 2013–14 | HK Rīga | LHHL | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | HK Rīga | MHL | 35 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 61 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2014–15 | Dinamo Rīga | KHL | 14 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 62 | 20 | 29 | 49 | 42 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2016–17 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Acadie–Bathurst Titan | QMJHL | 52 | 18 | 32 | 50 | 43 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 12 | ||
| 2017–18 | Örebro HK | SHL | 26 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | BIK Karlskoga | Allsv | 18 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Örebro HK | SHL | 45 | 18 | 8 | 26 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | Springfield Thunderbirds | AHL | 36 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Greenville Swamp Rabbits | ECHL | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Örebro HK | SHL | 47 | 20 | 15 | 35 | 16 | 9 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 2 | ||
| 2021–22 | Örebro HK | SHL | 47 | 14 | 20 | 34 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | Örebro HK | SHL | 51 | 19 | 22 | 41 | 12 | 13 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24 | Rögle BK | SHL | 50 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 10 | 15 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 2 | ||
| KHL totals | 14 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| SHL totals | 266 | 85 | 78 | 163 | 70 | 47 | 15 | 24 | 39 | 6 | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Latvia | EYOF | 5th | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2013 | HK Rīga | JCWC | 5th | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 29 | |
| 2013 | HK Rīga | CC | DNQ | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2014 | Latvia | WJC D1A | 
|
5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2014 | Latvia | U18 D1A | 
|
5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2014 | HK Riga | JCWC | 5th | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2015 | Latvia | WJC D1A | 
|
5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Latvia | WC | 13th | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Latvia | WJC D1A |
|
5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Latvia | WC | 13th | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Latvia | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2018 | Latvia | WC | 8th | 8 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | |
| 2019 | Latvia | WC | 10th | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2021 | Latvia | WC | 11th | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| 2021 | Latvia | OGQ | Q | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2022 | Latvia | OG | 11th | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| 2022 | Latvia | WC | 10th | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |
| 2023 | Latvia | WC |
|
10 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2024 | Latvia | WC | 9th | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | |
| 2024 | Latvia | OGQ | Q | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 35 | 12 | 14 | 26 | 39 | ||||
| Senior totals | 72 | 19 | 20 | 39 | 24 | ||||
Awards and honours
edit| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Juniors | ||
| MHL All-Star game | 2015 | |
| SHL | ||
| SHL Best Plus/Minus | 2022 | |
| International | ||
| World Juniors D1A silver medal | 2014 | |
| U18 D1A champion | 2014 | |
| World Juniors D1A bronze medal | 2015 | |
| World Juniors D1A champion | 2016 | |
| World Championship bronze medal | 2023 | |
| Team Latvia Top 3 Player | 2023, 2024 | |
References
edit- ^ KHL. "Player game log" (in Russian). khl.com. Archived from the original on 21 February 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^ "Panthers Agree to Terms with Forward Rodrigo Abols on a 2-Year Contract". Florida Panthers. 28 May 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
- ^ "Welcome back Rodrigo Ābols" (in Swedish). Örebro HK. 3 August 2020. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
- ^ "Panthers' Rodrigo Abols: Waived on Wednesday". CBS Sports. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ "Flyers sign forward Rodrigo Abols to a one-year, two-way contract". Philadelphia Flyers. 16 June 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
- ^ "Latvia wins historic bronze in OT". IIHF.com. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Rodrigo Ābols profile and statistics at KHL.ru
- Rodrigo Ābols at Olympedia
- Rodrigo Ābols at Olympics.com
- Rodrigo Ābols at the Latvijas Olimpiskā komiteja (in Latvian) (English translation)
