Son of Beloved Former Leaf Takes Next Step in His Hockey Journey
Photo credit: Kingston Frontenacs/OHL
Former Toronto Maple Leaf Nikolai Kulemin's son, Aleks, signed his first OHL contract, taking the first step in his junior career.
Aleks Kulemin signed a Scholarship & Development Agreement with the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League on Thursday the team announced.
Kulemin, who spent last season in the GTHL with the Don Mills Flyers, was selected 9th overall in the 2025 OHL Priority Selection by Kingston.
Kulemin had 24 goals, 43 assists, and 67 points in 69 games last season for Don Mills, and played in three OHL Cup games for the Flyers, who lost in the finals to the Toronto Jr. Canadiens.
The move comes as Frontenacs fans waited to see if Kulemin would sign. Kulemin, was a number of top draft picks represented by Newport Sports Management without a contract, including OHL top pick Kaden McGregor and fourth pick Brenner Lammens, both of whom also signed yesterday.
Why Leafs Fans Will Feel a Sense of Nostalgia
Aleks Kulemin plays a similar power forward game to his dad, who spent six seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs in a 10 season NHL career.
Nikolai had played with the Ottawa Senators on a PTO last preseason, which was a way to be close to his son in Ontario while continuing in hockey.
The elder Kulemin was a solid top-six winger during the early part of the 2010's for Toronto, being a hard-working power forward who was a top player for the pre-Matthews era Leafs.
Kulemin was not the only player with Leafs connections to go in the first round of the OHL Priority Selection.
The Oshawa Generals took forward Sam Roberts, son of Gary Roberts, with the 16th pick. With the third pick, the Ottawa 67's took Hudson Chitaroni, who's dad, Terry, was a fourth round pick of the Leafs in 1991.
What This Means for the Next Generation of Talent
Kulemin will join Leafs third rounder Tyler Hopkins in Kingston for next season, while Roberts, who is already signed, will be on an Oshawa team that includes Ben Danford.
A defensive-minded winger, Kulemin will likely not be bursting off the page offensively right away, but plays a mature game that could see him quickly adapt to the Frontenacs bottom-six.
Its unlikely that Kulemin would join the USHL, his focus appears set on the NHL route, although it is believed that there is some interest in eventually going the college route at some point.
Although a few years away, one can imagine Kulemin potentially being drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs, like father, like son.
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