The Boston Bruins were not the only Original Six team that took a run at Milan Lucic on Canada Day.
Lucic revealed on Tuesday's edition of the Spittin' Chiclets podcast that the rival Toronto Maple Leafs and the rebuilding Chicago Blackhawks also expressed interest in the bruising depth winger when he hit free agency this summer.
Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving, you may recall, brought Lucic to the Calgary Flames from the Edmonton Oilers in the James Neal trade of 2019. Well, he took another run at the six-foot-three, 240-pound heavyweight.
"Yeah. I talked to Tre a little bit, obviously because I had Tre in Calgary there. So, he expressed some interest, and I was like, 'Yeah, it would be tough for me to be a Leafer,'" Lucic explained on the podcast. "Just because of the Boston connection."
The 35-year-old Lucic instead signed a one-year, $1-million contract (with $500,000 available in performance bonuses) to return "home" to Boston for his 17th season. The fourth-liner expects goosebumps when he is reintroduced in the town where he skated his first eight seasons, won his Stanley Cup and welcomed the birth of his two eldest children.
Treliving — a renown kicker of tires — instead signed 36-year-old Ryan Reaves to a three-year pact carrying a $1.35-million cap hit to fill the role of personable puncher. (The Minnesota Wild were offering two years to retain Reaves.)
While Lucic’s 2013 Bruins memorably eliminated the "Leafers" in a Game 7 comeback stunner, they went on to lose in the Cup Final to the Chicago Blackhawks. But that rivalry doesn’t run as deep as the Atlantic.
Lucic, a Vancouver native, mentioned the Blackhawks as a contender for his services as well. The Connor Bedard factor — the "potential to play with one of the best players out of Vancouver ever" — was intriguing.
"Not only that, but you get to wear one of the nicest, if not the nicest, jerseys in the league," Lucic said. "Cool city. Awesome city. For me, I think I have the most family out of anywhere in Chicago. I would've been playing in front of family on a night-to-night basis."
Ultimately, the opportunity to return to Beantown and the allure of having his children witness him playing in a Spoked B — the clothing of his prime — was too attractive to turn down.
Despite being an occasional healthy scratch for the Flames in 2022-23 and posting career lows in points (19) and plus/minus (-13), Lucic's strong performance for gold-medal-winning Canada at the world championships in May caught the NHL's eye as his days in Alberta expired.
"I think it actually helped me get the interest that I did for UFA on July 1 because of all the scouts and stuff that came out and watched," Lucic said, enthusiastically.
"That's the biggest reason why I got a lot of interest is because I decided and called (Team Canada GM Doug Armstrong) to go to the world championships and played the way that I did."
Lucic scored twice and added a pair of assists in the tournament, while serving as a mentor for emerging talent such as Columbus draft pick Adam Fantilli.
"I still feel like I got juice in the tank. My plan isn't just to play one year and hang 'em up," Lucic said.
"Like the great Mark Recchi always said to us: 'You play till they kick you out.' … There's nothing better than being an NHL hockey player, because when you get to the other side, it sucks."
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