Milan Lucic hopes to give Edmonton Oilers an identity

Milan Lucic hopes to give the Edmonton Oilers an identity that they have lacked for quite some time. 

It’s going to be weird seeing Milan Lucic in an Edmonton Oilers uniform, especially after spending most of his career with the Boston Bruins and Los Angeles Kings. He has almost always been a part of a winning team. But the Oilers are a different story, having not made the playoffs since 2006. Lucic is up for the challenge.

This is a team that hasn’t really had an identity over the last couple of years and I think that’s the first thing we need to establish,” Lucic said, via the Edmonton Journal. “You have the right coach, you have the right GM and you have the right superstar to lead the way.”

Kris Versteeg, who was Lucic’s teammate with the Kings, knows him quite well. Versteeg believes that Lucic will give the Oilers the identity they need to succeed.

“He’s a guy who sets the tone of the game,” said Versteeg. “He can do it in so many ways, and that player is very rare in this game.”

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For a long time, the Oilers’ offensive identity revolved around their finesse players. It was led by forward Taylor Hall. However, no amount of first round picks fixed the Oilers’ woes. So perhaps a change of identity is justified in Edmonton. They still have Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, potentially giving them three excellent centers.

After signing a seven-year deal worth $42 million, Lucic will have to play a huge role in replacing Hall, who the Oilers traded to the Devils for Adam Larsson. Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli is quite familiar with Lucic, as Chiarelli used to be the general manager of the Boston Bruins. Lucic has 397 points in 647 games in his career, including 159 goals and 258 assists.