Mike Krushelnyski is a four time Stanley Cup champion and 14 year NHL veteran center and winger. While playing in the NHL, he won three Stanley Cups as a player with the Edmonton Oilers and one as an Assistant Coach with the Detroit Red Wings. In a career of nearly 1000 games, Mike not only enjoyed success with multiple Stanley Cup teams but was a part of one of hockey’s most infamous trades in hockey being traded to the Los Angeles Kings alongside Wayne Gretzky and Marty McSorley.
As a player, he is best remembered for scoring a double overtime goal that eliminated the heavily favored and defending Stanley Cup champions, the Calgary Flames. After a phenomenal year in the QMJHL, Mike was drafted to the Boston Bruins where he would begin his career in the AHL. After leading the league by December, he had earned his call up and never looked back. Once establishing himself as an NHL mainstay in Boston, he was then acquired by the Edmonton Oilers under GM Glenn Sather to be a party of what would become voted the “Greatest Team of the Century” the 1983-84 Edmonton Oilers. Along side greats such as Jarri Kurri, Paul Coffey, Grant Fuhr, Mark Messier, Marty McSorley and the great Wayne Gretzky, the team saw continued success winning 3 Stanley Cups in a span of 5 years.
After a few years in Los Angeles, he would then be traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs to play alongside greats such as Wendel Clark and Doug Gilmour ultimately finishing his career with the Detroit Red Wings.
Post retirement Mike was an assistant coach with the Detroit Red Wings when they won the Cup in 1997. A special team that would go on to see more success with great players such as Steve Yzerman, Brendan Shanahan, Nicklas Lidstrom, Martin Lapointe, Sergei Federov and the famous Russian 5. Mike would then go on to have stints coaching in Europe, Germany and Russia.
Mike has had over thirty years of experience working with NHL Gm’s and Coaches post NHL retirement, he continues to be active among the hockey community acting as an Ambassador to the NHL ALumni in Toronto. Mike continues to give back to the game actively appearing in NHL Charity events across USA, Canada and Europe. He has also appeared on numerous talk shows and media outlets such as TSN, CBC and Sirius XM.
The decision to form the NXT group was carefully constructed after establishing the necessary network and relationships among the hockey world. Once his son, Alexander, retired from his playing days, the two collaborated their networks to be able to provide young hockey players as well as established hockey players great advice to continue their success on and off the ice.
Having invaluable first hand experience as a player, coach, director of personnel, video coach, and scout, Mike collaborated with his son, Alexander, to establish the necessary network and resources to find conducive ways to help young players achieve their dreams.
Mike has two children, Andrew and Alexander, and currently resides in Toronto, ON with his wife Areta. He was born in Montreal, and is of Canadian/Ukrainian descent.
