OT: Nikolay Kulemin

[Subway Schenn]

I saw this thread and thought he passed away or something. Scared me

Yep, same here.

Loved Kulemin as a Leaf. That plane crash really hurt him. For those who need a bit more context: Plane crash tragedy hits close to home for Maple Leafs

Can't believe the guy is 35 already.

 

[TMLAM34]

Loved Kulemin. Mikheyev reminds me of him a little.

 

[PromisedLand]

Kulemin-Grabovaki-MacCarthur was a great 1B line for us.

Enjoyed them but that plan crash permanently changed Kulemin and I remember Mac and Gravo absolutely hated Ron Wilson and left because of him….

Mac and Grabo left because of Carlyle + Nonis

Grabo was bought out to give that ridiculous contract to Clarkson; Mac had had enough of Carlyle's BS.

Did you forget the legendary rant of Grabo filled with expletives on television regarding Carlyle?

 

[1specter]

IMO Carlyle derailed Kulemin's development as a player. Kulemin had shown previous flashes of being a decent goal scorer and had a lethal wrist shot which he didn't use enough, likely cause he got coached into going for the 'safe' play as Carlyle turned him into a straight up matchup/defensive specialist type player.

Besides that, Kulemin was a pretty solid and reliable player. Insanely strong, good skater, great shot and played a reliable north-south game. Just fell short of what he could've been offensively.

 

[AvroArrow]

The funniest thing was the people who would post Kulemin and a young Datsyuk's stats side by side

 

[Minty Cowboy]

Whats up with the spelling? Also I loved Kulemin as a leaf

 

[sparxx87]

Was never going to be a repeat 30 goal guy, but the loss of Igor Korolev (and others he knew) in the (IIRC) Metalurg plane crash made a night and day impact in the way he played the game. He never had great hands, but pre plane crash he played with a fire that let him use his physical ability to be a much more impactful hockey player than his skill suggested. His hands were choppy, his stride was ugly by todays standards, but he had a solid shot, was fast as hell and an absolute truck on his feet.

Yes I have a somewhat "romanticized" memory of him, but he was one of the most fun prospects to follow in my time as a leaf fan. His career track is why I defended the Korshkov pick as long as I did

I have many of these same romanticized memories Definitely one of my favourite Leafs of the past 15-20 years, and I definitely see the Korshkov comparisons.

Kulemin also had a pretty good shootout run for a time. Same backhand-forehand-blocker side move and was able to score far more than he ever should have.

 

[leaffaninvancouver]

Kulemin-Grabovaki-MacCarthur was a great 1B line for us.

Enjoyed them but that plan crash permanently changed Kulemin and I remember Mac and Gravo absolutely hated Ron Wilson and left because of him….

I thought we bought out Grabovski’s contract? He didn’t really leave by choice.

 

[Primary Assist]

Not a known goal scorer. His 30 goal season was a flukey one. This was my favourite moment of Kulemin as a leaf.

I love that hit, but it should have been called interference. From what I remember the Leafs were offside when McQuaid picked up the puck, so Kulemin should not have been allowed to hit him. Still a glorious open ice check though.

Edit - The other memorable Kuley moment, although not in his favor, was when he and Gleason were tussling after the whistle. Kuley got a little too handsy so Gleason dropped his mitts and broke Kuley's nose in one hit. Definitely highlighted the difference between the North American and Russian styles of play at the time.

 

[A1LeafNation]

I love that hit, but it should have been called interference. From what I remember the Leafs were offside when McQuaid picked up the puck, so Kulemin should not have been allowed to hit him. Still a glorious open ice check though.

That's what makes it so great, he wasnt suppose to hit him and it was a greasy move.

 

[TimeZone]

Loved him.

Thought he had the talent to be a consistent 20 goal guy, not exactly sure if he had personal issues or what but he fell off a cliff offensively pretty quick.

None the less I'd love to have a player on Toronto right now like prime Kuli

 

[banks]

He was turning into a very good NHL player, absolute bull on his way to the net... and that plane crash seemed to just let all the air out of his tires.

Yep, same here.


Loved Kulemin as a Leaf. That plane crash really hurt him. For those who need a bit more context: Plane crash tragedy hits close to home for Maple Leafs


Can't believe the guy is 35 already.

Yep. The Lokomotiv Yaroslavl crash was devastating for Kulemin. He's struggled, understandably, ever since. Tragedy can do that to people.

 

[DitchMarner]

I liked him a lot.

He was never McDavid with the puck, but from what I remember he was a decent puck-carrier before the plane crash and then he became quite sloppy and sluggish with the puck and couldn't really carry it effectively. He was always a hard worker and was good defensively. He had a hard wrister that I really liked... though the release wasn't the fastest. He should have shot the puck more often.

 

[fahad203]

Loved Kulemin. Mikheyev reminds me of him a little.

Other than they are both being Russians there's nothing similar about them. Maybe they are both 3rd liners

Kulemin was a beast. I remember him hitting Lucic once and almost folding him in half. He could really throw hits just didn't want to all the time

Apparently he was close with Igor Korolev and his passing away in plane crash really affected him

He ways had the tools, skating size and a very strong shot. Just couldn't put it together

 

[meefer]

Kulemin-Grabovaki-MacCarthur was a great 1B line for us.

Enjoyed them but that plan crash permanently changed Kulemin and I remember Mac and Gravo absolutely hated Ron Wilson and left because of him….

No offense, but if that's true my gosh our expectations were low. We criticize Tavares as our 1B and think Grabo was a great 1B? Nooooo, just nooooo.

 

[Leafidelity]

No offense, but if that's true my gosh our expectations were low. We criticize Tavares as our 1B and think Grabo was a great 1B? Nooooo, just nooooo.

All three of those guys had 30 goal seasons with us. People criticize Tavares as our 1b because they're ridiculous and lack context.

 

[MakeTheIronSing]

When you’re a part of an amazing line for this organization, the natural thing to do is break it up next year. This is the way.

 

[TMLAM34]

Other than they are both being Russians there's nothing similar about them. Maybe they are both 3rd liners

Kulemin was a beast. I remember him hitting Lucic once and almost folding him in half. He could really throw hits just didn't want to all the time

Apparently he was close with Igor Korolev and his passing away in plane crash really affected him

He ways had the tools, skating size and a very strong shot. Just couldn't put it together

Kinda sounds like Mikheyev… Although, his shot isn’t a strong as Kulemin’s was.

 

[Cams]

Did he ever get is immigration stuff straightened out? He was trying to get his Canadian citizenship and settle in Toronto, but apparently there was issues ironing out details - I remember Toronto Star had a big article about it a few years back

 

[firstemperor]

Probably the one guy during some dark times where it was easy for Leaf fans to buy the hype after that 30 goal year. At his peak, he was a very good- 2-way player, strong on the puck, and a good cycle game. He played on some soft Leaf teams (much like this iteration) which didn't really encourage him to hit as much as he did- but if he was brought up in the Bruins system, for instance, I could see a slightly different career trajectory. Just like I don't think Pasta becomes the level of player he is today, if he was brought up with us. When he wanted to, he could absolutely lay out guys on the ice.

Over time, he stopped playing with that youthful flare that made him great. He also benefited from a bit of luck, as for the most part, he had stone hands But not nearly as weak on the puck, he was a tank when he was on it. He also didn't have the luxury of a guy like Hyman- i.e. playing with superstar level players who could create chances out of thin air, which IMO hurt his game/stock (inverse of Hyman)- keep in mind, he played with the run and gun Leafs which played zero defense- don't think it did any favors for his development.

In retrospect, he was probably just a great 2-way checking line type player but I don't think we saw the best of him as a hockey player.

 

[Once]

That KGM line, at one point, was arguably one of the best second lines in the league.

 

[96]

Decent player, but my goodness did I find him massively overrated by Leaf fans.

This lol.

He was NEVER anything more than a third liner. Including his 30 goal season.

 

[Namikaze Minato]

Still have his jersey. Was my favorite guy to watch.