Jiri Kulich must 'tear up the league' with Amerks before his Sabres call comes
Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams and associate general manager Jason Karmanos ensured this offseason that every prospect in Rochester, including Kulich, is surrounded by enough talent to develop into an NHL player.
One of the final moments in Jiri Kulich’s second season with the Rochester Americans illustrated how far the Czech center has come since he was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres.
Kulich, 20, loves to score, and his left-handed shot has produced 51 regular-season goals in the American Hockey League. Yet, he wasn’t looking to shoot in May when he received a pass on the right flank during a Rochester power play in Game 5 of their North Division semifinal playoff series against the Syracuse Crunch.
The 2022 first-round draft pick faked a shot and passed to the far post, where captain Michael Mersch finished the play to cut the Amerks’ deficit to 3-2 in the second period of what would be their final game of the playoffs.
“That was a really excellent play,” Mersch gushed later.
Amerks center Jiri Kulich skates around Syracuse defenseman Max Crozier during a playoff game in May. Kulich could be part of a core of young players again next season in Rochester.
Joshua Bessex, Buffalo News
Kulich’s exhaustive, up-and-down year ended with Rochester’s loss that night, but the Sabres’ batch of roster moves over the past five weeks suggest that the talented forward isn’t done in the AHL.
There doesn’t appear to be a spot on the Sabres’ roster for Kulich after they added Ryan McLeod, Jason Zucker, Sam Lafferty, Beck Malenstyn and Nicolas Aube-Kubel. However, general manager Kevyn Adams and associate general manager Jason Karmanos ensured this offseason that every prospect in Rochester, including Kulich, is surrounded by enough talent to develop into an NHL player.
Though the Amerks lost Youngstown’s Joe Cecconi and Jeremy Davies from their defense corps, the club re-signed veteran forwards Brett Murray and Mason Jobst.
Josh Dunne was signed by Buffalo to a two-year, two-way contract after an impressive playoff run in which he produced 11 points in 14 games with the Cleveland Monsters during their run to the AHL’s Eastern Conference final. Dunne is a 6-foot-4 center one year removed from scoring 20 goals in the regular season, and brings 14 games of NHL experience with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Isak Rosen, above, was held without a point in seven games with the Sabres last season. The first-round pick in 2021 had 20 goals and 50 points in 67 games for the Amerks in 2023-24.
Joseph Cooke/Buffalo News
His presence will allow new Amerks coach Mike Leone to use Kulich and other prospects, particularly 2021 first-round draft pick Isak Rosen, in situations to apply their offensive talents. Dunne, 25, brings leadership to a dressing room that lost Mersch this offseason. Mersch, 31, is mulling retirement after 11 seasons of pro hockey.
The Sabres also replenished their AHL defense depth last month by signing Kale Clague, Colton Poolman and Jack Rathbone to two-way contracts. Each will have the opportunity to impress during Buffalo’s training camp, but won’t be an option for the NHL roster unless there is a string of injuries. Dennis Gilbert and Jacob Bryson are in line to be the Sabres’ seventh and eighth defensemen at the start of the season. Ethan Prow, 31, is back with Rochester on an AHL deal, though he may have trouble cracking the lineup if everyone is healthy.
The Amerks’ defense, however, is built around a trio of Sabres prospects: 2019 first-round selection Ryan Johnson, 2021 sixth-round pick Nikita Novikov and 2022 fifth-round pick Vsevelod Komarov, who is turning pro after a season in which he was named the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League’s top defenseman.
“I think we’ve got a great group,” said Amerks assistant coach Nathan Paetsch, who oversaw the defense last season after transitioning from his role as a development coach. “Komarov, I had him for player development and, man, I’m excited for him. Wait until you meet this kid. He’s such a polite, happy kid, and his progression the last two years, I don’t know if anybody could have seen that coming. I always knew he was special, but coming over from Russia, it’s always difficult your first year. So, we got a steal in the fifth round, let’s be honest. ... Man, when he adjusted, he took off, and I’m hoping for big things for him. We have such a good blend of young and old.”
Those defensemen will be tasked with making life easier for the Amerks’ goalies. James Reimer was signed by the Sabres to a one-year, one-way contract as insurance in case Devon Levi doesn’t make the NHL roster or there’s an injury on Buffalo’s roster. Reimer, 36, will have to clear waivers to join Rochester, though, and he hasn’t played an AHL game in 13 years. The Amerks’ backup will be Felix Sandstrom, who joined the Sabres on a two-way contract last month.
Sandstrom, 27, endured some challenges last season with Lehigh Valley, the Philadelphia Flyers’ AHL affiliate. He has an .880 save percentage in 30 NHL games.
Big changes up front
The makeup of the Amerks’ forward group changed significantly when the Sabres sent 2022 first-round draft pick Matt Savoie to the Edmonton Oilers for McLeod. Savoie, 20, would have played a prominent role in Rochester, though the center was expected to shift to right wing, given the club’s depth down the middle.Savoie’s spot may be taken by the prospect acquired in that deal, Tyler Tullio, who has 22 goals in 117 AHL games. Tullio, 22, was a fifth-round draft pick in 2020, but he’ll face competition for ice time and opportunity based on the number of forwards expected to be in Rochester.
He’ll have to carve out a role among a group of forwards that may include Kulich, Rosen, Murray, Dunne, Jobst, 2023 second-round draft pick Anton Wahlberg, Tyson Kozak, 2024 first-round draft pick Konsta Helenius, Viktor Neuchev, 2022 first-round draft pick Noah Ostlund, Aleksandr Kisakov and Lukas Rousek. The latter will need to clear waivers to join the Amerks if he does not make the Sabres’ roster.
Helenius, 18, signed his entry-level contract and must decide if he wants to remain in Finland for one more season in Liiga, or relocate and develop in Rochester. Ostlund, a fellow center, is entering his first season in the AHL after a promising performance in the Swedish Hockey League. He is among the organization’s top prospects, now that Savoie is with the Oilers.
The Amerks may lack recall options for the Sabres if there is an injury, though. There are few NHL games played on the depth chart, aside from Dunne and Murray, neither of whom has made an impact at that level. Barring another addition, Kulich and Rosen may be in line to be the first forwards recalled if Lindy Ruff needs reinforcements.
Former Amerks coach Seth Appert, now an assistant on the Sabres’ staff, lauded Rosen, 21, for his mature two-way game and considered him to be his best all-around forward during the regular season. Rosen had 20 goals and 50 points in 67 games, despite a scoring drought that occurred once he returned from his stint in Buffalo, with whom he appeared in seven games. The winger has the speed, defensive instincts and and a left-handed shot to contribute in the NHL, but it is unclear whether he is physically ready for the assignment.
There is no question that Kulich has the physical tools to play in the league now. He was built like an NHL player when the Sabres drafted him 28th overall in 2022, and he has had historic production as a teenager in Rochester. Buffalo needs Kulich to continue to improve away from the puck. He made strides defensively last season. However, he is still learning how detailed a center must be to excel. Kulich was on the ice for multiple faceoff goals against in the playoff series against Syracuse.
It is also important for Kulich to bounce back from a challenging season in which he was physically and mentally worn down by a brief stint with the Sabres and a long trip across the globe to captain Czechia at the IIHF World Junior Championship. Kulich had only three goals in 21 games after returning to the Amerks in January.
Some in the organization view Kulich as a future NHL center, though his ability to play and score from the wing will increase his odds to earn a spot with the Sabres sooner, rather than later. He and Rosen likely will be with the Sabres when they travel to Europe, where they’ll play an exhibition game in Germany before cutting their roster and opening the season in Kulich’s home country, Czechia, on Oct. 4.
“He has to learn to be more consistent,” Vinny Prospal, the Amerks’ assistant coach for the forwards, said of Kulich at Sabres development camp last month. “He’s a great kid. He’s a great player at that level, but he needs to remain and be consistent. He needs to tear up the league a little bit down there to show that he’s an NHL hockey player.
“He has great skating ability. He’s got a great shot. There just cannot be dips in his play. ... Kuli made tremendous strides in his two-way game. When he wasn’t scoring, he was doing all the little things on the D side. .... Is he an NHL player right now? I don’t know. Maybe he’ll come in here, tear it up and grab a spot.
A new voice is leading the Amerks in the fall. Leone does not have experience coaching in pro hockey, but he has earned respect from scouts and executives across the NHL through his work with the United States Hockey League’s Green Bay Gamblers.
None of the prospects that he is coaching in Rochester will be counted on to help the Sabres snap their 13-year playoff drought, but Leone and his staff will need to continue to push Kulich and Rosen to make an impact in Buffalo as soon as this season.