Leafs, Kulemin avoid arbitration

The Toronto Maple Leafs and left wing Nikolai Kulemin have agreed to a two-year contract, avoiding an arbitration hearing that had been scheduled for July 26.

Financial terms of the deal were not released, but CBC and TSN reported Kulemin's contract will pay him $2.8 million per season.

Kulemin had seven goals and 21 assists in 70 games last season, a drop-off from the career-best 30 goals he had in 2010-11.

A 2006 second-round pick of the Leafs, Kulemin has 68 goals and 84 assists in 308 games over four NHL seasons, all with Toronto.