Jiri Kulich was the top Buffalo Sabres prospect in playoffs

The Buffalo Sabres saw good output from their prospects during the Amerks playoff run. But Jiri Kulich really made his presence known. 

The Rochester Americans remarkable season may have ended tonight in a 1-0 loss to the Hershey Bears. But several high-end Buffalo Sabres prospects made their respective presence known. Isak Rosen’s defense, on-ice awareness, and his ability to generate shots on goal from the circle were just a few of many positives that jumped out.

Lukas Rousek always seemed to be around the puck in the offensive zone, and he led the top prospects with 12 points (5 + 7). Filip Cederqvist and Tyson Kozak had motors that never seemed to want to stop, and of course, Brett Murray’s physicality was tough to miss.

But no one quite made the type of impact that Jiri Kulich brought from the moment he returned for Game 3 against the Syracuse Crunch. With the Amerks down two games to zero at the time, Kulich made an immediate impact, scoring a goal in what would be his first of six straight games in finding the back of the net.

Jiri Kulich was the top Buffalo Sabres prospect in Rochester this year

The former 28th overall pick who’d turned 19 roughly six weeks ago, racked up 11 points (7 + 4) in the playoffs in 32 shots on goal. Do the math, and that’s a 21.8% shooting percentage. He was especially notorious on the power play, finding twine four times.

The playoffs served as an encore presentation for Kulich, who also led the Amerks with 24 goals in the regular season, with Murray taking second place with 23. But here’s the kicker: Kulich played in just 62 contests while Murray saw ice time in 71, giving the former 0.387 goals per game.

Okay, so why does this matter, exactly? Why are we talking so much about goals scored, and little else? One reason: Victor Olofsson. Olofsson, as you know, is also known for his goal scoring, and little else.

Kulich, however, has the potential to eventually churn out the same output as Olofsson from a goal-scoring standpoint. The difference? HIs defensive game noticeably improved as his season in Rochester went on, and that’s something we can’t say regarding Olofsson.

If Kulich enjoys a good offseason and subsequent camp, look for him to challenge Olofsson if the latter is still with the team in September. If the Buffalo Sabres move him, then Kulich could wind up succeeding him.

(Statistics provided by theAHL.com)