Nikolai Kulemin’s strong finish to the season has prompted many, including Bill Watters, to assume that he will demand a significant raise by July 1st. Kulemin is due to become a Restricted Free Agent (RFA) which means that other teams can offer him a contract.
The Leafs will have to match the offer or receive draft picks as compensation if Burke decides that Kulemin is not worth his market price. Likewise, Nikolai can opt to leave the NHL and play for a team in the KHL which will likely be his hometown team; Metallurg Magnitogorsk.
The recently created Russian league has become a bargaining chip for many Eastern European hockey players.
A couple of weeks ago Bill Watters suggested that the Maple Leafs will have to shell out between three and four million dollars for Kulemin. But is Nikolai worth that much money? In my opinion, no but Watters seems to believe that he’s ready to earn that kind of cash.
Yes, he had improved a great deal and he’s finally showing that great defensive game that many lauded. He works hard along the boards to recover loose pucks and he difficult to knock off the puck. But this is the first flash of great hockey that he has shown since coming to the NHL in 2008.
Furthermore, Kulemin seems to elevate his game late in the season. To earn over $3 million, in today’s NHL, he better wake up in October and not January.
I think he should get $2.5 million per season for two to three years. This allows him to still earn better money but he’s not locked in for long. If his development continues to grow at its current rate then the Leafs can offer him the big bucks.
I’m not questioning Kulemin’s talent or his value to his team as their best two-way player. He simply hasn’t played at his current level long enough to warrant $4 million a season.
It’s too hefty a price to pay in today’s NHL unless you know what you’re getting and we shouldn’t be surprised if Brian Burke furiously fights for an economical solution.
At the end of the day the Leafs may be forced to over pay for Nikolai. If that’s the case then he better continue to play his great defensive game and snap in 25 goals next season. That’s not far from possible if starts playing well in October for a change.
