The Making of a NHL Superstar : Chapter 2

November 8th, 2008 - Today was a huge day for Right Wing Kurt Kuklewicz. Before this day's game against the rival Hershey Bears, Head Coach Dan Bylsma had more news for him. Not having a goal or assist in over three games, Kurt feared that he would be demoted back to the third line. He knocked on the office door of coach Bylsma, with a sense of guilt of his recent play. As he walked into the room and coach Bylsma prompted him to have a seat, he thought to himself "How can one have such a great start to the season, and suddenly flat-line so hard." He began to think if it was normal, and if all the great players such as Lemieux and Gretzy occasionally expereinced a sudden decrease in their performance. Then, Kurt's daydreaming was suddenly interupted when Coach Bylsma said loud and clear, "Kurt, I decided to put you on the first line with Chris and Jonathan." Kurt was shocked at this great news, considering how his play was recently. "I understand you're going through a bit of a streak there, but I like your style of play. I like how you never give up. Your sense of urgency to make plays even when the team is down four goals, awes and motivates the rest of the team. Everyone is impressed with your incredible work ethnic. The truth is that I've had coaches of other teams tell me that they always see you working non-stop." Kurt was impressed with Coach Bylsma's words. But he knew it was true, that he would try his best to make plays at any point of the game regardless of the situation. Coach Bylsma thanked Kurt for coming into his office. Kurt walked toward the door with a huge smile on his face. As he walked out the door, Coach Bylsma had one more thing to tell him. "I want you to remember one thing, Kurt - every great player goes through bad streaks, but it's just a matter of time before they break out of it. It's simple math". Later, Coach Byslma stated to the Wilkes Barre press that Kuklewicz would be playing on the WBS Penguins first line tonight with forwards Jonathan Filewich and Chris Minard against the Hershey Bears. Later that night, Kuklewicz made assurance to his coach that he made a wise decision as he led his team to victory and was one of the three stars of the game yet again. While on the penalty kill, Kurt made an outstanding play that clarified his endurance and resiliance. Hershey up and coming star left wing, Chris Borque drilled Kuklewicz crazily into the boards while he was trying to set up a pass for a shorthanded goal. The Wilkes Barre crowd felt a sense of disaster as they saw one of their favorites down on the ice. Suddenly, the Bears had an odd man rush into the Penguins defensive zone and everybody's attention was focused on it. Wilkes Barre goalie John Curry made an incredible, sportscenter top 10 like save. The puck came around to Wilkes Barre defenseman Alex Goligoski who saw Kurt skating back to the Hershey blue line by himself. Goligoski buried his head and soared a pass across two lines to Kuklewicz, who was in the clear and on a breakaway. The crowd all rose to their seats, as Kuklewicz winded back for a slap shot and fired it top shelf on the goalie's stick side. The crowd erupted in a frenzy as Kuklewicz scored his sixth goal with the Wilkes Barre Penguins. Kurt had a goal and two assists that night, distributing the puck to Minard and Filewich most of the time. Kuklewicz began to feel like he suddenly was surged with energy and tapped into his inner hockey sense and knowledge.

November 15th, 2008 - With a recent Pittsburgh trade that sent center Jordan Staal to the Los Angeles for young defenseman Jack Johnson (I don't know why on earth they would make this trade), the big Pens needed some youth to replace Staal in their new line-up. Receiving a phone call, Right Wing Kurt Kuklewicz was awaken very early in the morning with news that he would be playing for Pittsburgh. There was one problem presented with this situation, however. After having 1 assist playing against the Binghamton Senators last night, which ended in a heartbreaking Wilkes Barre loss, Kuklewicz would have to make a trip to Pittsburgh and jump right into the lineup today in order to play against the Buffalo Sabres. So, Kuklewicz booked a plane trip straight to Pittsburgh and made it there by 5:30 to be at the 7:30 home game. Kuklewicz had never even stepped into the Penguin's locker room until now. This was the moment he was waiting for. All of his hard work and dedication led him here, to this place. Kurt suddenly came back to reality when he realized it was time to skate on the ice for practice. During the practice, forward Matt Cooke of the Penguins told Kurt that he would be playing on his line tonight with center Max Talbot. Penguins coach Michel Therrien told Kuklewicz that he would indeed be playing on the 3rd line with Talbot and Cooke. This was a thrill to Kurt, because these were two guys who are known for being workhorses, something he felt he also brought to the team. Therrien also informed Kuklewicz that he would be playing on the second powerplay line with forwards Tyler Kennedy and Miroslav Satan, and defensemen Ryan Whitney and Brooks Orpik. "We need your passing skills to fuel our overload powerplay style" Therrien added. It was time to skate on the ice for the game. Kurt and the rest of his teammates walked to the tunnel where ironically enough, the song that played for their entrance was "Fuel" by Metallica. This was it now, Kurt was skating with the big boys. Kurt's night was a struggle for him at first. The play was so much faster than what the AHL was. It was something that took two periods to get use to. During the third period, down 0-1 to the Sabres, Kurt cashed in on his first NHL goal on his second shot of the night. During the play, Matt Cooke fed Kurt the puck. He continued to skate with it until he came to the direct left side of Sabres goalie Ryan Miller. Unexpectedly, Kuklewicz dipped the puck in between Miller's left leg and the left post of the net. The crowd erupted as the score was tied with under ten minutes left to play. Kurt's night was not finished just yet. With over four minutes left to play in the game, Sabres forward Tim Connelly took a two minute roughing penalty. The first powerplay line with Crosby and Malkin could not get anything going that night. The second powerplay line then rose to the occasion for the Penguins. Kuklewicz received the puck from Ryan Whitney behind the net, and passed to Tyler Kennedy who was open in the slot. Kennedy shot and scored. Kuklewicz was indeed the fuel of the overload. His team celebrated with him as they beat the Sabres 2-1.

The Making of a NHL Superstar : Chapter 1

Note: This is the record of my NHL 09 blog of Be a Pro mode.
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Last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins organization drafted a young right wing from Hanover Township, PA. This young forward's name is Kurt Kuklewicz. This forward was on many teams' draft boards, but the Penguins took a chance on this forward. Listed at 5'10" and 162 pounds, Kuklewicz lacked the ideal size of a NHL superstar. This caused his draft grade to drop until the 2nd round. However, scouts rated Kuklewicz as one of the top playmakers in the NHL entry class. Straight out of the Wyoming Valley Wildcats, in the DEL league, Kuklewicz showed poise and clear passing and puck control skills throughout his DEL career. He also showed that he can play defense as well.


OT Magic!- Right Wing Kurt Kuklewicz was pure cash when it came to making clutch plays in his DEL team, the Wyoming Valley Wildcats. He celebrates a goal (above), after setting up a beautiful overtime game winning goal on a pass to teammate Rocco Dimarco.

June 22, 2008 - Kuklewicz signed a one-year 2-way contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins worth almost $1 mil. The 2-way contract made Kuklewicz eligible to play on the Pittsburgh Penguins and their AHL affliate, Wilkes Barre-Scranton Penguins.

October 4th, 2008 - Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins Head Coach, Dan Bylsma invited Kurt Kuklewicz into his office with some great news. He decided to put him on the 3rd line of the team the start of the season, and give him an opportunity to extend his play. Kuklewicz decided to wear the #14 jersey in honor of his lucky number.

October 8th, 2008 - Right Wing Kurt Kuklewicz stepped up onto the ice in a big way in his first ever AHL game. On his first shot of the game, Kuklewicz scored a beauty of a goal. He also tallied an assist to have a 2 point night against the hated rivals of the WBS Penguins, the Hershey Bears.

October 24th, 2009 - WBS Penguins Head Coach Dan Bylsma noticed Kurt Kuklewicz's playmaking abilities and hard, dedicated work. He called Kuklewicz into his office yet again with fantastic news. He would now be playing on the second line in Wilkes Barre. At this point, Kuklewicz led his team in goals, assists and points. If this continued, he would surely be playing with the Pittsburgh team in no time.

November 7th, 2008 - Kurt Kuklewicz already performing in a big way and looking like one intelligent draft pick, gave more reason to why he should start for the Pittsburgh Penguins. The game against the Lowell Devils on this date, went into overtime at home. Kuklewicz was paired on a line with Wilkes Barre Scranton Forwards Paul Bissonnette and Mark Letestu, seeing ice time during the last few minutes of overtime. Kuklewicz rushed into the slot of the Devils with under a minute remaining and received a beautiful pass from Letestu. He fired it pass the goalie's glove side to give the WBS Penguins a much needed win.



Clutch - Kurt Kuklewicz scores the game winning goal against the Lowell Devils at home to improve the Baby Pens' winning record (above).

There will be more to come on Kuklewicz's performance.