Milan Lucic Talks About his trade to Los Angeles.
Milan Lucic spent eight seasons with the Boston Bruins, helping the B’s win the Stanley Cup in 2011. Yesterday, Bruins GM Don Sweeney shocked a lot of the fans (and Lucic himself) by trading the power forward to the Los Angeles Kings. While this trade did help give the Bruins the 13th overall draft pick (which netted them Jakub Zboril), the fan base was clearly upset by the move.
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Milan Lucic spoke about the call and how rough it was for him and Bruins GM Sweeney (according to CSNNE.com)
”It was definitely an emotional call,” said the outgoing Lucic on the call. “I could sense it in his voice, that it was an emotional call for [Sweeney]. For me, I was hearing and reading everything on Twitter. He was the first one to call me and give me the news about it. Obviously, my emotions were there too. At the end of the day, Boston is the place I went to as a 19-year-old, and I got to be there for eight great years and got to be part of a Stanley Cup-winning team. It’s where I grew up as a person and the player that I am today, with the help of everyone a part of the Bruins organization and the city of Boston, and especially the fans.
“I think that’s why it was such an emotional call to be a part of.
”The most exciting thing about moving on from Boston, is I get to move on to a team that already knows how to win. They’re not a team that’s learning how to win, or trying to make that step to win a Stanley Cup. They already know how to do that. The possibility of playing with two really great players, with [Anze] Kopitar and [Marian] Gaborik, it’s definitely a real exciting feeling. Obviously, I get to be part of an organization and help them win another Cup. If you look at their roster right now, I’d say we’re definitely in the top two or three in the league right now as contenders. I’m excited to join a team like this that already knows how to win. I’m just going to go there and be myself, and be the best player I can be for the team.’’
Claude Julien on Milan Lucic’s departure.
“He’s sad to leave, but there’s another opportunity for him [in LA]. I’m sad to see him leave, but at the same time I understand the business and those things have to happen. It’s up to us to turn the page like we always do, and look forward seeing the guys that will come in replace some of the guys that are gone.”
The Boston Bruins will be soaking up $2.7 million of the Lucic contract. It’s unclear to see what will happen to Lucic after the end of next season. For all we know, we could see the big winger back in Boston by the 2016-17 season.