With a little help from Treehouse (adults without kids, never mind), Nikolai Kulemin has been able to get a handle on English.

"My boy (Alexei) is 11 months now and he is just starting to watch TV," Kulemin said. "I watch the kids movies. I feel more comfortable this year. Now, English is not hard for me."

Russian native Kulemin, in his second year with the Maple Leafs, has been getting a firm grip on the NHL dialect, as well. But no coach ever is truly satisfied, and though Kulemin has developed into a defensively responsible player, Ron Wilson could have settled for more scoring out of the 23-year-old in 2009-10.