Hitting a major milestone the hard way, the physical defenseman took the ice for his 1,000 th NHL game during Wednesday’s 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings at Amerant Bank Arena. Joining a special club, Kulikov is just the 402nd skater to hit that lofty mark in NHL history.

Now that I’m coming up on 1,000, it still doesn’t make sense. It seems like I just started last year and now it’s Year 16.’

SUNRISE, Fla. – Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov is skating in his 1,000th National Hockey League regular season game tonight vs. the Los Angeles Kings. The Panthers will honor Kulikov’s milestone in a pregame ceremony prior to Florida’s 6 p.m. (ET) game against the New York Islanders on Sunday, Feb. 2 at Amerant Bank Arena.

A few days before Dmitry Kulikov made his NHL debut with the Florida Panthers, general manager Randy Sexton had some high praise for his new defenseman. “I think Dmitry is going to be a core part of our organization for several years to come,

SUNRISE, Fla. – Take a bow, Dmitry Kulikov. When the Florida Panthers host the Los Angeles Kings at Amerant Bank Arena on Wednesday, the veteran defenseman will suit up in the 1,000 th game of his career. A special milestone, he will become the 402nd skater to hit that mark in NHL history.

The former Wild defenseman Dmitry Kulikov hit a massive milestone with the Florida Panthers on Wednesday. He skated in his 1,000th carer NHL game and recorded an assist in the Panthers' 3-0 win. Kulikov,

Dmitry Kulikov has finally gotten his time in the spotlight. Skating in his 1,000 career game Wednesday versus the Los Angeles Kings, the veteran blue-liner

Former New Jersey Devils defenseman Dmitry Kulikov has hit a massive milestone, as he played in his 1000th career NHL game on Jan. 29. The 34-year-old defenseman also made an impact during it, as he recorded an assist and a plus-1 rating in the Florida Panthers' 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings.

Kulikov didn't have to wait long to make his 1,000th NHL game a little more special, as he helped out on Sam Bennett's tally in the first period. With 245 points in his career, Kulikov has averaged roughly 20 points per 82-game season while often adding a physical element on defense.

There were some stick taps to go around the Florida Panthers locker room on Wednesday night. That’s because Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov and Cats Head Coach Paul Maurice reached some fairly significant milestones in their respective NHL careers. For Kulikov, he was playing career game number 1,000.

On Sunday, Florida sent blueliner Tobias Bjornfot to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers following Aaron Ekblad’s return from injury. That left seven defensemen on the Panthers roster: Ekblad, Gus Forsling, Niko Mikkola, Dmitry Kulikov, Nate Schmidt, Uvis Balinskis and Adam Boqvist.

Coming into Wednesday’s game between the Florida Panthers and Los Angeles Kings, you knew there would not be a lot of scoring. Both teams are too strong defensively, as evidenced last week when the Panthers lost a tight one in Los Angeles.