Report: Lucic-Bruins Reunion A ‘Strong Possibility’

Could the Boston Bruins reunion with former Bruins winger Milan Lucic finally happen when NHL free agency begins at noon this Saturday?

TSN Insider Chris Johnston tweeted on Wednesday that there’s a strong possibility Lucic could be signing a new contract with the Boston Bruins, the team that he won a Stanley Cup with in 2011.

With Milan Lucic free to speak with teams ahead of free agency opening Saturday, it sounds like a reunion with the Boston Bruins is a strong possibility.

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 28, 2023

Last week, the Calgary Flames permitted Milan Lucic, who can become an unrestricted free agent for the second time on Saturday, and his agent to talk to NHL teams ahead of the July 1 start of free agency. Shortly after, the 35-year-old winger acknowledged that he still cherishes his time in Boston and wearing the spoked B.

“Obviously, it’s a special place for me, and it will always be a special place for me,” Lucic told Athletic Insider Pierre LeBrun recently.

Lucic also told LeBrun that choosing his next NHL team in free agency will be about fit and ensuring he has a regular role in the lineup.

“But we’ve got what, 10, 11 days to see what happens (before July 1)? We’ll see what happens and then go from there,” Lucic pointed out. “The main thing is fit. What’s my role going to be on a team? How will the coach use me? Who will I play with? All that type of stuff. If all that works out really well, then you’re happy going to the rink, and if you’re happy going to the rink, you’re playing better, and you’re playing at the top of your game.”

On a recent 32 Thoughts Podcast, Sportsnet Insider Elliotte Friedman wondered to co-host Jeff Marek if Lucic could sign with the Anaheim Ducks.

Friedman: “I wonder about the Ducks,” Friedman opined. “I think he still has a place in California, and Jeff, what do we say about the Ducks?

Marek: “They’re young, and they miss Nick Deslauriers?”

Friedman: “That they got pushed around a lot.”

Marek: “Pushed every time they played Arizona, they got pushed around a lot. That one makes a whole lot of sense to me.”

In various conversations over the last month, Boston Hockey Now has also heard that the Vancouver Canucks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, New Jersey Devils, and Minnesota Wild will all look into Lucic as well.