Leeds Knights: Final import signing Cullen McLean keen to maintain 'winning culture'
HAD Cullen McLean any doubts about signing for Leeds Knights, he didn’t have to go too far to be assured he was making the right move.
The 25-year-old Canadian heads to West Yorkshire this month fresh from his first season as a pro, making a good impression with Neuilly-sur-Marne Bisons in France’s second-tier.
In all, Ontario-born McLean posted 34 points - including 21 goals - in just 26 regular season and play-off games for the Bisons.
The possibility of a switch to a first season of hockey in the UK came about before last season concluded.
Knights’ head coach Ryan Aldridge reached out to former Leeds defenceman Noah McMullin and forward Matty Barron - who helped the Knights win two league titles and a National Cup between 2023-25 - to see if they knew anybody who would compliment the players he was already intending to keep around for the 2026-27 campaign.
Both highly recommended McLean, who they had played alongside back home in the Canadian college USports League for Ontario Tech Ridgebacks.
And when it came time for McLean to do his own research into his next possible employer, the former Knights duo were only too happy to point him in Aldridge’s direction.
The subsequent conversations between McLean and Aldridge clearly went well, with the left-handed forward nailing down the final spot on the Knights roster for a campaign that gets underway with a visit to Hull Seahawks on Friday, September 18.
One of the things McLean was quickly made aware of was the winning culture that has been established in Leeds under Aldridge, who has won at least one trophy in the four full seasons he has been in charge.
Three of the six trophies won during Aldridge’s tenure have been regular season championships - the most prized trophy of all in the UK - and while the pressure of maintaining the Knights’ winning run may be noticeable, it is not something that worries McLean.
“There’s a saying about where pressure makes diamonds, right? - but no, I don’t feel like there’s any pressure on me,” said McLean.
“I’ve been through it all - through the highs and through the lows - so I just kind of take it year by year, day by day and I just want to do the best that I can and help this team win.
“I know this is a good league and that it is a growing league. I know there's five imports now - or non-British trained players as they call it.
“And I know Noah and Matty who used to play here, so they've told me lots and I think the league, since then, has grown a lot.
“And yeah, I know about Leeds - they win, they don't stop winning. And I love winning, I'm a competitor and I want to be part of a winning culture.”
On his first season as a pro, McLean has nothing but good memories of his time living and playing on the outskirts of Paris and wants to build on that experience in Leeds.
“It was an adjustment for sure,” he added. “I had some visa issues at the start, so I had like two days before my first regular season game, I didn't have any pre-season.
“So that was kind of tough, but once I got a couple of games under my belt and got adjusted to the lifestyle and the French, it was good.
“I took it in my stride after those first couple of games and the group was great, honestly. “The French guys, the imports, they were all amazing and I have nothing but good things to say. I was happy with my time there - but I'm really excited for this new chapter in Leeds.”