Bruins
“I think that he’s going to have success with the way we want to play.”
After the Bruins experienced an offseason that was full of changes, Milan Lucic is ready to help fill the void after signing a one-year deal to return to Boston in July.
While no one can fully replace the retired Patrice Bergeron (or the departure of fellow veteran David Krejci), Lucic will combine with newly installed captain Brad Marchand, as well as alternate captains David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy to help try to offset the loss of leadership.
As the Bruins continue in the team’s training camp, Jim Montgomery has noticed the presence of the 35-year-old Lucic.
“The things that have stood out is he’s really relishing the leadership role and mentorship role, which has been great,” Montgomery told reporters, per Sean T. McGuire of NESN. “His attitude has been fantastic.”
In addition to off-ice presence, Montgomery thinks Lucic can still contribute in games as well.
“And then on the ice, he’s making plays,” said Montgomery. “His ability to make plays in small areas has been very noticeable to me. And I think that he’s going to have success with the way we want to play.”
Reflecting on his recent history — as a leader on Canada’s 2023 World Championship-winning team — Lucic said he’s trying to draw on that in his second stint with Boston.
“I had a really good experience at the World Championships kind of being the older guy there and having to take on a leadership role so I got a lot of good prep there,” he explained.
“It ended up being a really great experience and a great tournament because we won the gold,” Lucic added. “But it was a really good learning curve for myself, and I’ll try to apply what I learned and what I gained from that experience into this season.”
Originally drafted by the Bruins in 2006 (50th overall), Lucic played the first eight seasons of his NHL career in Boston. He was a member of the team’s 2011 Stanley Cup championship season, and had all three of his most prolific seasons with the Bruins before being traded to the Kings in 2015.
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