Kulak settled in, solidifying defense with Avalanche

DENVER -- Brett Kulak was just about settled into his place in Pittsburgh following his trade from the Edmonton Oilers when he got the call on Feb. 24: He was being traded to the Colorado Avalanche.

“We were a playoff team there (in Pittsburgh), a good team, things were going well. So, we were thinking, ‘All right, probably finish the year here.’ Obviously, things change,” said the defenseman, who had been traded to the Penguins from Edmonton on Dec. 12. “Another blind side, but pretty excited to come to Colorado, that’s for sure.”

The excitement is understandable. Even if Kulak had remained with the Oilers or Penguins, he would’ve gone to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year. Those two, however, were eliminated in the first round. The Avalanche are still going and have a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Second Round against the Minnesota Wild heading into Game 3 at Grand Casino Arena on Saturday (9 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SN1, SN, TVAS, CBC).

It’s not every day that a player can say they played with superstar forwards Connor McDavid in Edmonton, Sidney Crosby in Pittsburgh and now Nathan MacKinnon in Colorado in one season, but Kulak can.

“Yeah, it's pretty fortunate that way. Not everyone gets to do that, to play with one of those guys in their career, and for me to do it all in the same season, it's pretty cool,” Kulak said. “So yeah, I've learned a lot from all these guys and they just kind of make you better the more time you can spend around them.”

Now the 32-year-old is focused on winning the Stanley Cup that eluded him and the Oilers in two straight Stanley Cup Final appearances in 2024 and 2025. Kulak said there are differences between the two teams.

“Both teams were veteran groups, guys with a lot of experience. But just the style of play, the team and the way the team finds ways to win is a lot different,” he said. “Edmonton, you’re pretty focused on the big guys there (McDavid and Leon Draisaitl) and they drive so much of the offense.

“Here, every night, we’ve gotten contributions up and down the lineup. Just how this team prides itself on defense first. Since I got here in the regular season, something that stood out to me is the offense is great and everyone has fun doing that, but this team has a lot of fun when they’re defending and we’re letting in no goals or one or two against per night is where we’re enjoying our game. I think that’s a difference, too.”

Kulak has 27 points (three goals, 24 assists) in 104 playoff games. That includes three assists with the Avalanche in six postseason games. He’s formed a strong second-defense pair with Sam Malinski, who’s in his second full season with the Avalanche.

“I mean, for me to be able to play with him, because he has that defensive mindset, it allows me to jump up all the time and create more offense and have the trust he’s going to have my back and be back there to take the rush if I make a mistake or whatever,” Malinski said. “I know where he’s going to be almost all the time and that makes it easy.”

Kulak’s acquisition is similar to when Colorado traded for defenseman Josh Manson from the Anaheim Ducks on March 14, 2022, as far as adding a specific skill set on the blue line.

“When we got Josh, we were filling a need, size and strength, defending ability, physicality, his ability to break the puck out. We felt he had some good offensive years, and he could continue those years with us and contribute on the offensive side as well,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “This year, it’s kind of a swap of different types of defensemen for us (Kulak acquired for Sam Girard), but we really liked what we saw from ‘Kuly’ playing with Edmonton, his skating ability, his shut-down ability, not just in the regular season but being able to help Edmonton get to the Final a couple of years.

“I think he’s exceeded expectations for me. When you watch him up close and personal, this guy’s very hard to beat in all situations. He’s stuck to you like Velcro all the time and gives you no time and space. He’s a big, strong guy who skates real well. He’s super intelligent, too. He’s kind of got a lot of the ‘Tazer’ (Devon Toews) traits for me.”

Kulak has played a lot of hockey the past two-plus seasons but he’s feeling good. He’s got another chance at the Cup, and after some unexpected moves this season, he’s definitely good with where he is.

“It was a crazy year, didn’t expect it to go the way it’s gone (but) to be where we are now with the team I’m on, the position we’re in and how much fun we’re having is pretty special,” he said. “Yeah, it's all worked out in my favor, and I feel pretty lucky for the way the year has gone so far.”

NHL.com independent correspondent Ryan Boulding contributed to this report.