Brett Kulak

Brett Kulak (born January 6, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). Kulak was selected by the Calgary Flames in the fourth round, 105th overall, of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. He played junior hockey for the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League (WHL).

Junior
Kulak played four seasons of junior hockey for the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League (WHL) between 2010 and 2014. In 216 games with the Giants, he scored 35 goals and added 93 assists. The Calgary Flames selected Kulak with their fourth round pick, 105th overall, at the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. Following the conclusion of his WHL seasons in both 2012–13 and 2013–14, Kulak joined the Flames' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat, on amateur try-out agreements; he played four and six games in each respective season.

Professional
On March 18, 2014, the Flames signed Kulak to a three-year, entry-level contract. He began the 2014–15 season with the ECHL's Colorado Eagles before earning a promotion to the AHL's Adirondack Flames. Kulak was then recalled to Calgary and made his NHL debut on April 11, 2015, in the Flames' final regular season game, a 5–1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets.

On October 18, 2016, against the Buffalo Sabres, Kulak recorded his first career point, assisting on Michael Frolík's first period goal. The Flames won the game 4-3. Kulak finished the 2016–17 season with 3 assists in 21 games.

On August 28, 2017, the Flames re-signed Kulak (who was a restricted free agent) to a one-year, two-way contract worth $650,000.

On October 1, 2018, the Flames traded Kulak to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Matt Taormina and Rinat Valiev. Kulak was subsequently assigned to the Canadiens' AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket. On November 22, he was called up by the Canadiens after an injury to defenseman Noah Juulsen. He was immediately put into the line-up. A few games later, star defenseman Shea Weber was activated from injury reserve and the Canadiens sacrificed veteran defenseman Karl Alzner before Kulak by putting him on waivers. On December 29, 2018, Kulak scored his first goal for Montreal in a 5-6 defeat to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He scored his first game-winning goal in a 3-0 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on January 12, 2019.

On May 25, 2019, the Canadiens signed Kulak to a three-year, $5.55 million contract extension with an annual average of $1.85 million.