Names To Know: Jiri Kulich Has Bolstered His NHL Draft Stock After Strong Showing In U18 World Championship

Welcome to the 19th installment of 'Names To Know', a look-ahead at prospects who the Columbus Blue Jackets could select in the upcoming NHL Draft.

The Blue Jackets have two first-round draft picks—No. 6 and No. 12–providing general manager Jarmo Kekalainen the opportunity of shaping his team for the future as they look to get closer to contention status and being a formidable playoff threat.

Since the Blue Jackets have two first-round picks and many ways to go in a wide-open draft, we've covered quite a few names to this point, with each player providing an interesting case for selecting them.

Today's 2022 NHL Draft prospect that we're taking a look at is 18-year-old Jiri Kulich from the Czech Republic.

At six-foot, 172 pounds, Kulich is a center featuring a left-handed shot and once again, his position at center fills another need the Blue Jackets have long coveted.

In 2021-22, Kulich played for HC Karlovy Vary U20 in only two games but scored four points (two goals, two assists). He scored five points in four playoff games (four goals, one assist). For HC Energie Karlovy Vary, he scored 14 points in 49 games (nine goals, five assists). In three playoff games, he had one assist.

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Among international competition for Czechia, Kulich was a goal-scoring machine.

Kulich was captain of Czechia's U18 club in the U18 World Championship, leading the team with 11 points and nine goals (also led the tournament in goals) with seven of those goals on the power play. He had a goal in every game but one including a hat trick and the overtime winner in the 6-5 victory (a four-point game) against Canada.

While his team failed to medal, this was the same tournament in which he played against the top draft prospects like Connor Bedard, who he outscored by three goals as Matthew Zator of The Hockey Writers points out.

Kulich also led Czechia U18 (International-Jr) with 17 goals in 16 games (22 points, five assists), and he captained Czechia U18 in the Hlinka Gretzky Cup where he had four points (three goals, one assist) in four games. In two games during the world juniors, Kulich had one assist before the tournament was canceled due to covid.

While it's likely that the Blue Jackets would leave Kulich on the board in the first round as it appears Kulich is slated to be a later first-round selection, or even still, a second-round pick, Kulich's star continues to grow. So much so that he would be the first Czechia prospect taken in the first round since 2018. 

The Tournament All-Star Team, chosen by the media

Logan Cooley, F, Team USA
Jonathan Lekkerimki, F, Team Sweden
Ji Kulich, F, Team Czechia
Lane Hutson, D, Team USA
Tomas Hamara, D, Team Czechia
Hugo Hvelid, G, Team Sweden

Tournament MVP: Ji Kulich

— J.D. Burke (@JDylanBurke) May 1, 2022

NHL Combine: Center Jiri Kulich (6-0, 172) of Karlovy in Czechia was named MVP at the 2022 IIHF World U-18 Championship (9 goals). He is interviewing with all 32 teams this week.

— Mike Morreale (@mikemorrealeNHL) May 31, 2022

The Athletic's Corey Pronman slots Kulich as a middle-of-the-lineup player and named Ross Colton as his NHL comparable.

With all the star power on the Tampa Bay Lightning, Colton might not stand out among those stars to the casuals, but in his second NHL season, Colton put together a 39-point season (22 goals, 17 assists) and has eight points (five goals, three assists) in 12 playoff games. Colton scored the clinching goal in Game 5 of the 2021 Stanley Cup Final versus the Montreal Canadiens.

Analysis: Kulich is a well-rounded prospect. He has a fluid, powerful skating stride that can generate clean entries and beat defenders wide. He has slick 1v1 skills and combined with his speed is a threat off the rush. He can make plays but is more of a threat when he’s in motion than picking apart defenses as a playmaker. Kulich has a great shot, showing a one-timer and wrist shot threat from range. Kulich doesn’t show fear from attacking the net or taking a hit to make a play. He projects as a top-nine forward, whether at wing or center with the potential to play higher in a lineup.