With the NHL Draft Combine going on in Toronto and the draft being less than a month away, I will start breaking down potential draft selections of the Columbus Blue Jackets. Obviously, this year is much harder to predict who this player will be as the Jackets are selecting in the lower half of the draft due to their successful season and first journey into the playoffs.

My first player that I will break down would be a dream scenario if he was available at #16 where the CBJ select. Dmitry Kulikov is a defenseman that is a puck mover that also has the ability to play physical when needed. Don't be misled though as Kulikov is a very offensive defenseman as he racked up more than a point a game with Drummondville of the QMJHL with 12 goals and 50 assists in just 57 games. He is a power play stud with a big left handed shot.

The other part of this 6'1", 195 pound defenseman is he has freakish cardiovascular endurance. I haven't heard yet if this has spelled out at the combine but it did during his season this year as reported by NHL.com's, Brad Holland. "Kulikov, an effortless skater who controls the pace of a game like a veteran, would spend all 60 minutes on the ice if he had his way, defying the need to rest or even take a breather between shifts."

Whether it is a superb conditioning or an insatiable desire, it is the type of player that you want on your team. Drummondville assistant coach Danny Brooks told NHL.com, "In practice you have to throw him off the ice. He'll have 8,000 pucks and be shooting, and shooting ... as a coach you have to manage those kinds of guys because come April and May they'd be gassed. So you have to watch him. But that's a good problem to have." Do you think Head Coach Ken Hitchcock would love this guy?

Whatever team he gets selected by, he will need a moving truck just for his trophies that he earned this year. He was named a league First-Team All-Star as well as a Rookie All-Star. He also won the Emile Bouchard Trophy as the league's best defenseman; the RDS Trophy as the league's rookie of the year; the Raymond-Lagace Trophy as the league's offensive rookie of the year; and the Michael Bossy Trophy as the league's best pro prospect.

Kulikov was on the move up the scouting reports this year due to his exceptional play. He was number 23 overall in November and was number 14 overall by February on the International Scouting Service and he moved up from 17 to 11 ranking with the NHL Central Scouting North American Skater list.

“In his first year (in the QMJHL) he’s been an all-around good player. He’s a great skater; he can carry the puck and shoot the puck well. He’s strong too, he can take big hits and they don’t seem to bother him. What we saw this year is likely what we are going to see from Kulikov in the future; he’s going to play the same way in the NHL. He knows when to join the rush, he plays defense first, but recognizes the holes. He can shoot the puck well on the powerplay and I wouldn’t be surprised if he played in the NHL next year.”
- NHL Central Scouting’s Chris Bordeleau

Not only is Kulikov a physically gifted hockey player, he is also very intelligent. Coming from Russia to Drummondville, he didn't understand a word of English when he got off the plane. Within a month he could understand almost all that was spoken to him. He also had to give a speech at an award ceremony and gave part of it in both English and French.

His entire move to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League was in an effort to play in the NHL. He could have easily stayed put and played in the KHL but he wants to live in North America and also bring his family here also.

To be honest the chances of Kulikov falling to #16 are slim as I have seen predictions as high at #6 selection with the Phoenix Coyotes and the lowest was just once by NHL.com's Brad Holland who has it in his latest mock draft. The natural place for Kulikov to be selected will be at #10 to the Edmonton Oilers where he would be a natural choice. If he would slide to #16 though and the Jackets select him, think of player that is like Kris Russell only 4 inches taller and with a much harder shot from the point. Other comparisons are to Sergei Zubov and Andrei Markov. Keep your fingers crossed!

Fire The Cannon!

Eric Smith
Eric.Smith@HockeyBuzz.com

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