Milan Lucic reveals true feelings on David Pastrnak

NHL tough guy Milan Lucic is back to where is National Hockey League career began, agreeing to a free agent contract with the Boston Bruins after completing a seven year contract that he originally signed with the Edmonton Oilers in 2016.

And with the several departures that the Bruins experienced this offseason including the likes of David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron to retirement along with Taylor Hall, Nick Foligno, Dmitri Orlov and Tyler Bertuzzi all changing teams, Lucic is going to be one of the key leaders on Boston's roster alongside Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak.

And as far as Pastrnak is concerned, Lucic always knew that he had the potential to be a superstar player in the NHL.

“Different players; much different players,” Lucic replied when asked about comparisons between Pastrnak and Connor McDavid, both of whom he's played with. “But what ‘Pasta’ has been able to do the last couple of years has been really impressive, and to see him grow. …I was fortunate enough to play with him his rookie year as an 18-year-old. That stretch that we had as linemates, we had a lot of fun playing together, and not only that, he was coming over every day. I was cooking him dinner as an 18-year-old and to see him grow into a Top 5, Top 10 player, whatever you could put him in both, has been really awesome to see. So, excited to be back with him as well." 

I think he’s definitely up there with the tops of the league like the McDavid’s, and [Auston] Matthews, and [Leon] Draisaitl’s and all those guys. You don’t score 60 goals by accident but now he’s got some pressures moving ahead with the new contract and all that type of stuff but he’s the type of guy that has the personality that will keep it going and keep that high level of play.”

While he was an extremely valuable member of the 2011 Stanley Cup champion Bruins and continued to consistently provide offense in subsequent years, Lucic's stats began to diminish in a big way after his first year with the Oilers. This past season with Calgary, he racked up only seven goals with 12 assists, his lowest career point total. 

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