Iced Up Youngsters: Milan Lucic

Loooooch! Boston fans have a are treat: an opportunity to whatch an old school power forward. The Bruins seem to have a long tradition of those (Neely, Esposito), and Milan Lucic is starting to fill their shoes nicely.

Career Stats (Games – Goals Assists)

2007-2008: 77 – 8 – 19

2008-2009: 72 – 17 – 25

2009-2010: 50 – 9 – 11

Ok, he’s not a big time scorer, but there’s a reason he’s popular in Boston, and his name is well known around the league. Injuries hampered him in his third season, so hopefully he’ll have better luck this year.

Profile: Lucic’s was born and raised in Canada, but he’s got Serbian bloodlines. To make it to the NHL, he overcame Scheuermann’s Disease, which causes his upper back to curve. He has had to prove himself at every level that he’s played at. He didn’t make a Junior A team in Vancouver out of rookie camp, but was brought in after five games in Junior B. In 2006-2007, while a member of the Vancouver Giants, he was tied for the lead in scoring and was named CHL tournament MVP for the playoffs. The individual award went along nicely with the Memorial Cup that the team brought home. Prior to the season, Boston had drafted him 50th overall, so I’m sure they felt good about their young prospect. This was his second season with the team, in which he registered 30 goals and 68 points, after 9 goals and 19 points the year before. Also in 2007, he laced up his skates for the 2007 Super Series for Team Canada against Team Russia(an 8 game series for U-20 players to commemorate the 1972 Summit Series). He chipped in 3 assists as his club won 7 games and tied the 8th. As a rookie, he made a name for himself by when he dropped the gloves 13 times. He also participated in the YoungStars game during All-Star Weekend.

What makes him special?: Like I mentioned before, he’s a power forward. There’s nothing pretty about how Milan plays the game. He just puts his head down and goes to work. Most of his goals come from around the net, as he’ll either barrel through people once he has the puck, or stand in the goal mouth and get deflections and rebounds. Lucic will drop the gloves when needed, with any opponent. He doesn’t just throw fists, he puts his whole body into a punch. He goes into the corners to battle for pucks, usually coming out with it. He can throw a solid check, which nearly always sends his opponents flying. Basically, he’ll just cause physical pain to anyone and everyone in his path. In the 2010 playoffs, he was the only one on his team that decided to show up for Game 7 against Philadelphia as his team blew a 3-0 series lead, as well as a 3-0 lead in that game. His pair of goals spurred his team in, but it wasn’t enough as they choked the lead away. Still, with his heart and work ethic, he proved to be one of the few guys worth keeping, while most of the other guys deserve to be shipped out.

Hate factor: Medium to high. He’s a fighter and a solid hitter. If your not a Bruins fan, how can you cheer for a guy that will try to beat up your whole team?

Jersey Worthy?:For a B’s fan, yeah, he’s a definite BUY. He’s not their most talented playmaker, best scorer, or a shutdown defensive guy. But when he’s in the line-up, he brings energy, toughness, and he can score a decent amount. He’s going to go down as one of the most popular guys in Beantown history, if he manages to stay healthy.

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