How acquired: Selected with No. 28 pick in 2022 NHL Draft
2023-24 season: Buffalo (NHL): 1 GP, 0-0-0; Rochester (AHL): 57 GP, 27-18-45
Kulich (6-1, 186) picked up where he left off in his second AHL season, with 16 goals in the first 23 games and 12 points (six goals, six assists) in seven games as captain of Czechia at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship. He also was named to the AHL All-Star Classic.
The 20-year-old, who made his NHL debut on Nov. 25, slowed in the second half of the season in the AHL, scoring 11 goals in 34 games. Despite the struggles, Kulich led Rochester with 27 goals and was third on the team with 45 points and was named to the AHL’s Top Prospects Team for the second straight season.
The next step for him is to show his success at the AHL level can translate to the NHL.
“He’s a great kid, he’s a great player at that level, but he needs to [be] consistent,” Rochester assistant Vinny Prospal said. “He needs to tear up the League a little bit down there and show that he’s an NHL hockey player. … ‘Kuli’ made tremendous strides in his two-way game. When he was not scoring, he was doing all the little things, even on the [defensive] side, and that’s a credit to him. He can also improve face-offs and maybe become a penalty killer, stuff like that. Be a more well-rounded player. But he’s definitely on the right path.”
Projected NHL arrival: This season