Dmitry Kulikov Recalls His NHL Debut in Finland During Global Series

Dmitry Kulikov was living a fast-paced life.

Just under four months after being selected by the Florida Panthers as the 14th overall pick in the 2009 NHL Draft, the 18-year-old defenseman made it onto the team’s Opening Night roster. However, Game 1 of 82 was not taking place in North America like in past seasons.

After playing two preseason exhibition games in Finland, the Panthers started their 2009-10 season against the Chicago Blackhawks at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki.

In his first game, Kulikov played for 16 minutes and 40 seconds, contributing to the Panthers’ 4-3 shootout victory.

“There was a lot of stuff going on, It was a long road trip for us to start the season. We were near the end of it. It was a time where I didn’t know if I was going to make the lineup. I was just working and taking it day by day. When I was in the lineup, I was really excited, anxious, and all those things.” : Kulikov said while reflecting on the 2009 Premiere Series.

Fast forward to 15 years later, after 958 games and 18,650 minutes on the ice, very little has changed.

Kulikov returned to play with the Panthers in Finland on Friday, contributing to their 6-4 victory against the Dallas Stars in Game 1 of the 2024 Global Series in Tampere.

Kulikov, a talented Russian, experienced a moment of completion that made him connect all the dots. Head coach Pete DeBoer stood behind the bench for the Stars.

In 2009, he was the person who granted Kulikov the opportunity to become the head coach of the Panthers. Despite playing almost 1,000 NHL games, Kulikov still remembers his beginnings in Finland.

Similar to his extensive career leading him back to the Panthers following playing for seven other teams, it was fitting that he came back as a Stanley Cup winner.

Dmitry Kulikov Career so far

Kulikov, aged 33, played for the Panthers for his initial seven NHL seasons, having been selected 14th overall by Florida in the 2009 NHL Draft. During the first five years, Florida performed poorly in the NHL while experiencing early playoff exits for two years.

Afterward, he played for various teams such as Buffalo, Winnipeg, New Jersey, Edmonton, Minnesota, Anaheim, and Pittsburgh before rejoining Florida for one season.

Except for three seasons in Winnipeg, Kulikov never stayed with a team for more than one season and switched teams midseason two times. During Kulikov’s absence from Sunrise, the Panthers transitioned from consistently ranking near the league’s bottom to becoming one of the NHL’s top contenders every year.

Florida has made it to the playoffs for the last four seasons in a row and recently reached the Stanley Cup Final.
Kulikov has tallied eight assists this season, which is tied with Niko Mikkola for second place among Florida defensemen and just one assist behind Oliver Ekman-Larsson for the team lead. He also ranks third on the team in hits (40) and fourth in blocked shots (38).

At the start of the season, he partnered with Mikkola on Florida’s second defense line due to injuries to Ekblad and Montour, two key players. Ever since the two players came back last month, Kulikov has been consistently paired with Ekman-Larsson on the third line, as long as he is playing. Three times this season, Kulikov has been left out of the lineup to give Maurice the opportunity to play some of his other defensemen.

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