"Don't they already have a mascot?" - Fans flame Boston Bruins after reports of Milan Lucic return

By ADITYA KAR

Modified Jun 28, 2023 20:41 GMT

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The Boston Bruins appear to be attempting to get veteran forward Milan Lucic back. Chris Johnston, an NHL insider, said on Wednesday that there was a "strong possibility" that Lucic will return to Boston.

Rick Dhaliwal, a sports writer in Vancouver, broke the news of the Lucic-Bruins development and added that it "will happen." He said earlier this week that the Flames had given Lucic's agent permission to negotiate with teams before the opening of NHL free agency on Saturday afternoon.

Lucic is still bound to the Calgary Flames and can't join any organization until free agency starts this weekend. He discussed a possible return to Boston with Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic earlier this month, saying:

"Obviously it's a special place for me and it will always be a special place for me."

Bruins fans on Twitter are not in favor of the move because of Lucic's age. They are expressing frustration over why their team would waste their cap space on him at this point in his career:

Lucic will probably replace the experience of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, who are not expected to return to the team.

Can Milan Lucic turn out to be the player the Boston Bruins need?

Lucic is playing for the Boston Bruins.

On Saturday, Milan Lucic, 35, is slated to become an unrestricted free agent. He was selected by the Boston Bruins in the second round of the 2006 draft. At the start of the 2007-08 season, he was just 19 years old when he made his NHL debut.

Early in his second season, in 2008, he made himself known by throwing Toronto defenseman Mike Van Ryn through the glass. Lucic tied for the Bruins' team lead in points in the 2010-11 season, scoring 30 goals and tallying 32 assists before helping the Boston Bruins win their first Stanley Cup in 39 years.

In total, Lucic played for Boston in 566 regular-season games and 96 playoff contests, tallying 139 goals and 203 assists during the regular season and 26 goals and 35 assists during the playoffs.

After being dealt to the L.A. Kings in the summer of 2015, he played for Calgary (2019-23) and Edmonton (2016-19).

Over the previous five years, he has only averaged 8.2 goals and 12.4 assists per season, but over the past two seasons, he has participated in all but five games.

Lucic will seem to fit the description for a club in need of that kind of player if the Boston Bruins are trying to fill out their fourth line with an intimidating presence at a reasonable price.