They say twice is nice and that is what the Rochester Americans are feeling as they are sending Jiri Kulich and Isak Rosen to the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic. The All-Star Classic will be held from Feb. 4 through Feb. 5 in San Jose, California. All 32 AHL teams will have at least one representative, and every division will have 12 players on the roster.
Kulich the Czech Sensation
When anyone mentions the elite scoring duo from the Rochester Americans, it is hard to pick on who to talk about first. The best way is to just start with the younger one of the two, the 19-year-old Jiri Kulich. Kulich is a 28th overall selection back in the 2022 NHL Draft by the Buffalo Sabres. The Kadan, Czechia native is on a tear to start the 2023-24 season for the Americans. In 23 games he leads the team with 16 goals and is second on the Americans with 22 points. He sits only two behind All-Star Classic partner Rosen. Plus, he is second on the team in points per game (Pt/G) with 0.96, which is only behind Tyson Jost’s 1.25. However, Jost has only played in four games with the Amerks, so technically, Kulich leads the team in that category as well.
During the 2022-23 season, Kulich tallied 24 goals and 46 points in 62 games for the Americans. In the Calder Cup Playoffs, he finished with seven goals and 11 points in 12 games. Also, he did play for Czechia in the U20 World Junior Class (WJC) where he has seven goals and nine points in seven games played. The Americans did loan him to Czechia in the most recent U20 WJC that was in Gothenburg, Sweden, where he captained the team to a bronze medal. He finished the 2024 WJC with six goals and 12 points in seven games. His 12 points tied him for first in the WJC in scoring.
The 16 goals that were mentioned earlier have Kulich sitting fifth in all of the AHL despite only playing in 23 games. This is his second year with the team, and he looks poised to prove why the Sabres picked him in the first round.
Isak Rosen is One Cool Swede
When talking about of the dynamic duo, you cannot forget t mention the other. The 20-year-old Stockholm, Sweden native Isak Rosen, like his counterpart, has been lighting it up this season. Rosen was picked 14th overall in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft by the Buffalo Sabres.
It says a lot when the Sabres, in back-to-back drafts, picked guys like Rosen and Kulich, and they both are going off. Rosen leads the Americans in points with 24 only two ahead of Kulich. He is also third on the team in goals with nine, which puts him seven behind leader Kulich.
This is Rosen’s second full season with the Americans after finishing with 14 goals and 37 points in 66 games during the 2022-23 season. Just like Kulich, he played in the 2023 WJC where he tallied two goals and six points in seven games.
When it comes to the 2023-24 season, Rosen has nine goals and 24 points in 27 games. Elite Prospects has him projected to finish with 23 goals and 61 points in 68 games this season. That could give Rosen career-highs in all offensive categories if he is able to reach those numbers. As it stands right now, he can make that happen.
The Americans Dynamic Duo
What makes the duo of Kulich and Rosen so explosive is that they have combined for 128 points (63 & 66) in 178 regular season games. Furthermore, the Amerks are 21-3-2-1 when both guys record at least one point in the same game. Plus, they are dominant to a point where the Americans are almost perfect with an 8-1-0-0 in games that Rosen and Kulich both score a goal. These guys are so in sync that they both made their NHL debuts in the same game back on Nov. 25 versus the New Jersey Devils.
It makes sense why both Rosen and Kulich are going together to the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic.
