Milan Lucic has been playing great as of late, helping his stacked team reach third place in the West. It is no surprise the Los Angeles Kings want to keep him, as the 27-year-old has the experience, but also the physical prowess needed to put in good minutes each game.
Keeping him on, though, could change the team's dynamic going forward.
"Lucic is a guy - I think the general indication has been, 'Hey, we're interested in having you back.' He's a guy that can be a difference-maker," said TSN's Bob McKenzie, according to Chris Nichols. "But in order to do that, they may have to move some bodies around in the off-season."
So if the winger is not staying in the City of Angels, what are the options for him? Could the Vancouverite opt to move back to his hometown and play with the Canucks? He has previously stated that it was his "dream."
"It's hard to say. That's the old deciding... at what cost do you want to play in your hometown," said McKenzie. "And again, where does he fit for Vancouver. They'd have to see how it works for them. But because he's a hometown guy, who in the past has sort of wondered aloud what it would be like to play in his hometown, you at least throw it on the table as a consideration. I mean, hey listen - you're an unrestricted free agent. If you get to that, the world is your oyster. You get to go anywhere you want, who wants you."
"So there's an obvious connection there," he continued. "And as I said, in a perfect world, I guess the Kings would like to find a way to make this happen. But there's so much hockey to be played too. We'll see how he plays. We'll see how the Kings fare. A lot can happen between now and the time a deal needs to be done."
Since joining Los Angeles this season, Lucic has already scored 12 goals, with 17 assists, for a total of 29 points, on pace to beat his performance last year with the Bruins.
Lucic is coming off another great performance last night, scoring a tiebreaking goal early in the third, alongside Vincent Lecavalier and Drew Doughty, to give the Kings a key conference win over Dallas, their ninth overall win in 12 games since Dec. 25.
