Milan Lucic wasn’t meant for the Edmonton Oilers
By Nick McAdam
According to a report from TSN, the Edmonton Oilers are rumored to be ready to part ways with Milan Lucic via trade.
Former Boston Bruin Milan Lucic has been shopped around the league before, and it’s looking as if it might happen again this summer.
Various reasons ranging from play all the way to Lucic’s monster contract are likely paving the way for the Edmonton Oilers considering a sale.
The 30-year-old arrived to Edmonton through free agency, and somehow, he made an enormous amount of money doing it. Lucic likely grabbed the nearest pen to quickly ink a seven-year contract worth $42 million.
According to CapFriendly, the forward’s cap hit per season is $6 million exact. If the obvious isn’t already stated, that’s way too much money for a player of Lucic’s caliber.
The Vancouver native started off strong with the Oilers back in his debut season with the club. However, a lot of his points are due to who he was playing with that season in Hart Trophy winner Connor McDavid.
This season wan’t the one to replicate for Lucic. The winger dropped down to the third line of the Edmonton lineup and as a result, he was only able to manage 10 goals and 24 assists which are totals he averaged near his career-low numbers towards the start of his NHL journey.
The combination just hasn’t been working for the Oilers and more specifically, Peter Chiarelli. It can be seen what the general manager was trying to do with the signing of Lucic. McDavid himself told reporters as a young prospect that he’d love the idea of playing with Lucic.
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Now, Chiarelli is going to try and dig himself out of the whole that he put himself in the first place. According to SportingNews, Frank Seravalli who originally broke the rumor said that Edmonton would be willing to offload a pick or a prospect to try and get the heavy contract off their hands.
"“My understanding, and the reason that Milan Lucic is on (TSN’s top trade) list is because, from my understanding, they’re trying and talking to teams about potentially taking another contract back even if that means sweetening the pot with a pick or some other roster player in order to make it happen,”"
Another storyline that emerged from the rumor was that Lucic asked for a move himself. It might seem as if the left-shot forward is relatively not patient enough to wait for the Oilers’ project, and you can’t blame him.
However, Elliotte Friedman revealed on Hockey Night in Canada that the rumor was not true.
"“I was told that was not the case. I asked somebody and they told me that he had not asked for it. But I believe there has been some conversation about is there a way that this can be worked on to make it happen.”"
Overall, the inevitable that most everyone knew would happen when Lucic signed is potentially going to happen this summer. A monster deal for a not-so monster player recently was simply not going to add up.
Lucic is the perfect surrounding player for a core trying to realistically go for the Stanley Cup, not a project. Edmonton saw signs of promise in last year’s playoff run, but it was a one-and-done scenario this time around and reality is probably hitting the franchise.
Edmonton is surely on the right track with the plethora of young talent that is coming through. Lucic would have been a great signing if he was cheaper a few years down the road. At this moment in time, however, things aren’t meant to be for Lucic in Edmonton.
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What are your thoughts on the scenario revolving around Lucic and the Oilers? Share what you’re thinking in the comments section below.