Brett Ponich grew up in rural Leduc County, southeast of Edmonton. He attended school and played hockey in Beaumont and Leduc, AB, before moving to Portland, OR, at 16 to play junior hockey for the Portland Winterhawks. In 2009, he was drafted in the second round, 48th overall, by the St. Louis Blues in the NHL entry draft. He later signed his NHL entry contract and played professional hockey for five years with the St. Louis Blues and Columbus Blue Jackets organizations.

After retiring from professional hockey, Brett pursued an undergraduate degree at the University of Alberta's Augustana Campus in Camrose. He then earned his medical degree from the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine. Brett is currently a plastic surgery resident physician in Calgary.

Brett is an avid fisherman and takes every chance to get out of the city to visit the family acreage and ranch. He also enjoys teaching and coaching, having founded and operated the Columbia Valley Hockey School, which has hosted over 250 hockey players each year for the past decade.