Jiří Kulich (born 14 April 2004) is a Czech professional ice hockey centre for the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect to the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 28th overall by the Sabres in the

2022 NHL Entry Draft The 2022 NHL Entry Draft was the 60th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on July 7–8, 2022, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. Montreal were originally scheduled to host the 2020 draft but were unable to do so due to the COVID-19 pandem ...

Playing career

Kulich made his professional debut for

HC Energie Karlovy Vary HC Energie Karlovy Vary is a professional ice hockey team based in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. They play in the highest-level national league, the Czech Extraliga. The club The history of the ice hockey in Karlovy Vary dates back to the 1932, ...

in the Czech Extraliga during the 2020–21 season where he appeared in eight games. During the 2021–22 season he recorded nine goals and five assists in 49 games. He was drafted in the first-round, 28th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the

. On 15 July 2022, Kulich embarked on his North American career after he was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Sabres.

International play

Kulich represented the Czech Republic under-18 team at the

2021 IIHF World U18 Championships The 2021 IIHF World U18 Championship was the 22nd such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams would have participated at several levels of competition. The competition also would have served as qualifications for the 2022 c ...

where he appeared in four games. He again represented Czech Republic at the

2022 IIHF World U18 Championships The 2022 IIHF World U18 Championship was the 23rd such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams participated at several levels of competition. The competition also served as qualifications for the 2023 competition. On 28 Fe ...

where he served as captain. He led the tournament in goals with nine and was subsequently named tournament MVP. He represented the Czech Republic national junior team at the

2022 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2022 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships were the 46th edition of the IIHF World Junior Championship, played from August 9–20, 2022 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The tournament was originally scheduled to be held from Dece ...

. He again represented the Czech Republic at the

2023 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2023 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships are the 47th edition of the IIHF World Junior Championship, scheduled to be held from December 26, 2022 through January 5, 2023 in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Moncton, New Brunswick. They were origina ...

where he recorded seven goals and two assists in seven games and won a silver medal. He again represented the Czech Republic at the

2024 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2024 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (''2024 WJHC'') will be the 48th edition of the Ice Hockey World Junior Championship. It will begin on December 26, 2023 and will end with the gold medal game being played on January 5, 2024. This ma ...

where he recorded a team-leading six goals and six assists in seven games and won a bronze medal.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* 2004 births Living people Buffalo Sabres draft picks Buffalo Sabres players Czech expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Czech ice hockey forwards HC Karlovy Vary players Ice hockey people from the Ústí nad Labem Region National Hockey League first-round draft picks People from Kadaň Rochester Americans players Sportovní Klub Kadaň players {{CzechRepublic-icehockey-bio-stub