Oilers’ Brett Kulak races from daughter’s birth to playoff game

LOS ANGELES — Brett Kulak didn’t get his regular pregame routine in on Monday.

Instead of skating with his teammates ahead of Game 1 against the Los Angeles Kings, the Edmonton Oilers defenseman was on a flight after briefly returning home for the birth of his second daughter, Scotlyn, on Sunday afternoon.

The plan had long been for Kulak’s wife, Caitlin, to have a C-section early Monday morning, but health care workers at the hospital heard the family might have a scheduling conflict.

“They called on Saturday evening and were like ‘Hey, we see your husband and the Oilers are playing on Monday. We can squeeze you in tomorrow afternoon. And so it ended up being Sunday afternoon,'” Kulak said.

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The veteran blueliner practiced with the Oilers in San Jose on Saturday. Then, as the rest of the team traveled to L.A. to settle in ahead of Edmonton’s first-round matchup with the Kings, Kulak flew from San Francisco to Calgary on Sunday morning. His mom met him there and they drove to the family’s off-season home in Canmore, Alberta.

Soon after, Kulak and his wife headed to the hospital, and met their newborn daughter about two hours later.

He spent the evening with his newly expanded family, then boarded a flight back to California on Monday morning and rejoined the team before puck drop.

“Everyone’s doing really well. So I’m thankful for that,” said Kulak, who played 24 minutes and 58 seconds in Edmonton’s 6-5 loss. “It’s all you can hope for, obviously. It just makes you happy and just grateful. And everyone’s healthy. And it gives me a better peace of mind knowing I have to leave, but they’re all feeling good.”

This isn’t the first time Kulak has stepped away from his team for a birth in the midst of a playoff run.

His first daughter, Ryleigh, came on May 13, 2022, between Games 6 and 7 of the Oilers’ first-round series against the Kings.

Kulak credits his mom and his mother-in-law with helping his family out and allowing him to concentrate on playing.

“It definitely helps that I can just go focus on hockey. And my wife’s been great, too,” he said. “She’s like, ‘You don’t worry about us. We’re going to be just fine. You go, we’re super proud of you. So you go do what you need to do for the team.'”

Kulak and the Oilers will be back in Edmonton for Game 3 on Friday.