Lucic’s goal lifts weight off big winger
Veteran plans to spend more time parked in front of net, writes Robert Tychkowski.
It was only pre-season, it came late in a rout over the Winnipeg Jets’ “B” team, and on a night where Ty Rattie put up five points and the Oilers’ top line put up 11, it was barely noticed.
But after going 30 straight games without a goal last year, and scoring just once in the final 46, popping one in his first game of the pre-season felt like an overtime winner for Milan Lucic.
Knowing the puck actually does fit into the net, knowing those snake-bitten hands haven’t turned to stone just yet, is a welcome relief for the Oilers veteran.
The occasion wasn’t lost on the rest of the team, either.
“For Looch that was a big goal,” said Edmonton Oilers head coach Todd McLellan, who wouldn’t wish Lucic’s slump on anyone. “He had a lot of those opportunities last year that just deflected off his tape and ended up in the stands or wherever.”
Maybe not the stands, but certainly not the net. But this time he planted in the slot, got his stick on a pass from defenceman Oscar Klefbom and scored his second goal since Dec 23.
“That was a firm, nose over the puck goal,” McLellan said. “That was a confident goal on the power play. It doesn’t matter who you score it against, you still have to put it in. It was nice to see him do that.”
Lucic didn’t want to over-celebrate the sixth goal in a 7-3 win, but inside he was fist pumping like there was no tomorrow.
“We know it’s a pre-season goal but sometimes that’s good for the mental part of it and the swagger part of it, because of what it does for your mindset moving forward,” said Lucic, who was playing while sick with the flu.
“A lot of those bounces didn’t go my way last year, so moving on and starting to feel good about yourself is the main thing. Our power play had some opportunities so it was nice to get one there because that’s a big area where we need to improve this season.
“Establishing myself in front of the net and getting a goal there is what I need to do more of this season.”
That would certainly help a power play that fell to the bottom of the league last year, partly because of Lucic’s inability to convert at his usual rate.
“That’s a good sign for those types of goals to go in for you,” said McLellan. “It doesn’t matter where or when. He scored about 12 power play goals two years ago and a lot of them were that type, in the paint, using his mass and size and good hands.”
Ten goals last year was his worst total in a full season since his rookie year in 2007-08.
“There were definitely points where it was weighing on you big time,” said Lucic. “And there were points where you kind of just laugh about it because of how everything was going.”
It was going wrong. His shooting percentage sank to 6.8 per cent after hovering around 15 for most of his career.
“I went back to my old stiffness, a stiffer stick this year, just for things like that,” he said. “It worked. It’s just more about feeling good about things and establishing yourself in front of the net and starting to feel better as the pre-season rolls along, so when Oct. 6 gets here, you’re finding your stride and really ready to go.”
He, and they, can only hope.