Avalanche defenseman Brett Kulak exceeding expectations to be key contributor

The Colorado Avalanche saw a lot of action during the trade deadline season this past March, with general manager Chris MacFarland wheeling and dealing to get deals done with the hope of improving the team as much as possible while gearing up for the playoffs.

Those moves seem to have worked thus far, with the Avalanche awaiting their opponent in the upcoming Conference Finals, set to start in short time.

The most notable deal was the re-acquiring of forward Nazem Kadri, meant to help bolster the top-nine, which it has. That wasn't the only deal MacFarland made, though.

Another, not so notable, deal that paid dividends was the addition of Brett Kulak. Avs Faithful wasn’t thrilled with the deal at the time, as fan favorite Sam Girard was dealt to Pittsburgh, with Kulak being the return, but as the season has gone on, burgundy and blue nation has been pleased, to say the least.

A serviceable, stay at home defenseman, Kulak has totalled more than 20 points in three of the last five seasons—for three different teams. Most recently known for being an Edmonton Oiler, Kulak was drafted in the fourth round in 2012 by Calgary.

He’s had three 100-block seasons across his last four campaigns, and in two of those seasons he also amassed over 75 hits. Kulak’s a steady third-pair defenseman, a reliable player that any coach would love to have.

Coach Jared Bednar said as much after Kulak’s game winning goal to dispatch the rival Minnesota Wild on Wednesday night at Ball Arena.

Bednar had nothing but glowing things to say about Kulak’s game since he came to Denver. Reliability, trustworthiness and adaptability – these tenets are high praise for anyone, let alone a player who’s only been in the burgundy and blue for 27 games.

Kulak clearly continues to improve and has clearly gained the trust of the staff. He’s averaging over 21 minutes per game on the ice during the playoffs, nearly two minutes more than he did during the regular season for the team. He did not have much of an offensive imprint this season – just three assists across 27 games played with the team – but he was relied upon to provide a defensive presence – which he did, averaging over one block per game.

Since the lights have been brightest, Kulak has responded. Across the series with Minnesota, arguably the second-best team in the playoffs, Kulak earned four points in five games—drastically elevating his offensive play.

Bednar said the coaching staff has been encouraging players like Kulak to elevate their games and contribute in areas they typically don’t. Kulak has responded there as well, much to the fans’ delight, as he joined the rush to score the game-winning, series-clinching overtime winner in Game 5.

The Kulak acquisition was another shrewd move made by Chris MacFarland and Avalanche brass, as they continue to have a team that has very few weaknesses and is getting contributions from players from the top to the bottom of the lineup.

If the team, and Kulak, can continue their stellar play, they’ll continue to be successful – again, much to the delight of Avalanche nation.

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