The Florida Panthers have signed defenseman Dmitry Kulikov to a one-year contract worth $1 million. This is the third big-name defenseman the Panthers have picked up during the 2023 free-agent frenzy. The Panthers will be going all-in as they try to make it back to the Stanley Cup Final and win their first Stanley Cup as a franchise after their tough loss this past season to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Kulikov is coming off of a season where he scored three goals and 13 assists for 16 points through 67 games split between the Anaheim Ducks and Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins picked him up as a rental for the playoffs, but unfortunately, they failed to make the postseason for the first time in the last sixteen seasons.
The Panthers drafted Kulikov 14th overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft after a standout season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) with the Drummondville Voltigeurs. In 57 games with them, he scored 12 goals and added 50 assists for 62 points, good enough for fifth on the team in scoring. He got his first taste of NHL action in the 2009-10 season with the Panthers and scored six goals and added 20 assists for 26 points through 72 games in his rookie season.
This will be the second time Kulikov has played for the Panthers. He played for eight other teams between his stints with the Panthers as he spent time with the Buffalo Sabres, Winnipeg Jets, New Jersey Devils, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, Ducks, and Penguins. He has been a trade deadline target for contending teams for a number of seasons, so for him to sign with a team that’s super close to a championship is not surprising.
In 872 NHL games, Kulikov has scored 45 goals and 169 assists for 214 points, which comes out to 0.25 points per game. He has never stood out for his offensive ability but rather for his strong two-way game and shutdown ability. More recently, he has taken a veteran role and turned into a defensive defenseman that plays well in a depth role.
Kulikov’s Fit With the Panthers
The Panthers are going to be going all-in for a Stanley Cup, so filling out their bottom four with a veteran defenseman is a smart move. Kulikov is someone they can trust to play an increased role if he’s called upon in the event of any injuries to his teammates.
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He is a solid defenseman that will be a big part of the Panthers’ success, assuming they’re able to run it back and make a strong run again. They barely squeezed into the playoffs last season and had a hard path to the Final, so they’ll be looking to finish higher in the standings.
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