BUFFALO – In just days following his recall, Sabres rookie Jiri Kulich morphed from a raw but talented neophyte into a huge contributor and trusted asset coach Lindy Ruff utilized in critical situations.
On Friday in Anaheim, Kulich’s 12th NHL outing and second as a center, his natural position, he scored in overtime to clinch the Sabres’ 3-2 win against the Ducks.
“To be honest, I was always dreaming about this moment,” Kulich said following Tuesday’s practice in KeyBank Center. “Yeah, it was really special for me.”
Using Kulich, 20, in the three-on-three overtime and allowing him to take a defensive-zone faceoff – he won eight of his 11 draws that night – illustrates Ruff’s growing confidence in the youngster.
In Saturday’s 4-2 win against the San Jose Sharks, the Czech was hot in the circle again, winning 13 of his 18 attempts. At one point, cramps prevented Ruff from playing him for about a 10-minute stretch
“I said, ‘Is he ready to play yet?’” said Ruff, whose Sabres host the Minnesota Wild tonight. “Because I wanted him in the faceoff dot.”
Kulich won a whopping 72.4 percent of his draws over the weekend. In Rochester, he worked with Americans assistant coach Vinny Prospal and captain Mason Jobst to improve his ability in the circle.
“Vinny … yelled at me every time because I was like 20 percent every game,” said Kulich, who has a strong relationship with Prospal.
His faceoff prowess and second NHL goal helped the Sabres sweep their three-game California trip and vault into a playoff spot. They have an opportunity tonight to earn their fourth straight win for the first time since a five-game streak in January 2023.
Kulich, the 28th overall pick in 2022, has possibly played his last game for the Amerks. When he returned to Rochester earlier this month, roster space, not performance, pushed him back to the AHL.
He scored two goals and three points in four games before the Sabres recalled him Nov. 16.
Kulich said the 10 days he spent in Rochester, where he starred for two seasons, “boosted my confidence.”
“When I went there, it was a little bit of frustration for me, first game,” he said. “But I just love the group of my teammates in Roch. They are so fun. We have a lot of fun. On the ice, though, I felt so confident.”
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Kulich played the wing, a position that helped ease his transition to the NHL, in his first nine games this season.
“When they sent me down, I was a center again,” he said. “I felt much (more) confident down there to play as a center.”
While additional defensive responsibility accompanies the position, playing center offers Kulich a chance to showcase his speed.
“Sometimes it’s hard, especially in the D-zone,” he said. “But for me, as an offensive guy, I think it’s great to have more speed and do better plays. Sometimes when I was wing, I was stuck on the wall a little bit.”
Ruff moved Kulich to the middle for last Wednesday’s 1-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings.
“Centers sometimes get to develop a little more speed coming out of the zone versus the other guy that’s playing wing and along the walls,” Ruff said.
Just a month or two ago, the idea of playing center against the best players in the world seemed a bit daunting to Kulich.
“I just didn’t know what to expect from the NHL because sometimes it’s really hard,” he said.
But he has kept developing a more mature game and growing more comfortable.
“He’s definitely figuring it all out,” said winger Jason Zucker, Kulich’s linemate.
“He had a good camp,” Ruff said. “(He) didn’t seem real confident with the puck at the end of camp and through the games. I think his confidence has grown. Like, when you watch a couple of the breakouts, even a couple of breakouts in San Jose, to kind of wheel his way through the defensive zone and handle those plays down low and hang onto the puck, shows me he’s gained a lot of confidence and understands where the next play is.”
Knowing where that next play is will likely result in more goals like Friday’s.
“That’s the moment you live for as a young player,” Ruff said of Kulich’s overtime winner. “You get that opportunity … to score a big goal in that moment is something that should really boost your confidence.”
