Milan Lucic has not had the season he (or the team) wanted. He has 17 goals and likely will continue the scoring decline that began with his career-high 30 in 2010-11. With just one season left on his contract, his future with the Bruins is uncertain.

But right now, the rugged Vancouver native is providing something that the B’s desperately need from him — leadership.

He’s skating with two talented-but-green players in 18-year-old David Pastrnak, who is playing in North America for the first time, and 23-year-old Ryan Spooner, whose NHL future was in serious doubt after he failed to make a mark in previous call-ups.

The line can be trick-or-treat, challenged greatly in its own zone. But after being all but benched in the B’s 3-2 overtime loss to Anaheim last Thursday, the trio came through in a big way during a critical weekend. Lucic scored the first two goals of Saturday’s 4-2 win against the Rangers, and Spooner and Pastrnak had the goals in Sunday’s 2-1 overtime victory against the Hurricanes.

Spooner and Pastrnak have been revelations in the B’s late-season push for a playoff spot, but coach Claude Julien said Lucic’s contributions should not be overlooked. He is shepherding into the NHL two important players in the team’s future.

“When you look at what (Pastrnak and Spooner) will have learned in a small amount of time compared to a lot of guys who have to go through that stage by stage, they’ve been forced into that position, and in my mind, for the most part, they’ve responded well,” said Julien, whose teams plays another big game tonight against Florida at the Garden. “Anyone who knows the game sees they struggle in their own end with coverage and battles, but they also bring a lot on the offensive side, which you saw (Sunday).

“(Lucic) has been really good. It’s something not everybody sees on the bench. He’s been really positive with them but also pushing them about needing to be better, like . . . if Looch is forechecking, he expects somebody to be a third man high. So he’s really helped them along, and he’s made them accountable. And for people who don’t know, he’s done a good job that way.”

Like everyone else, Lucic had questions about the line when it was put together, but there really was no choice. His longtime center, David Krejci, suffered a partially torn MCL and missed 15 games. Some sort of scoring line had to be cobbled together.

And for the most part, it’s worked.

“When they put us together in Chicago (a 6-2 B’s win Feb. 22), you really didn’t know what to expect,” Lucic said. “I think (Spooner’s) attitude and his focus and his confidence have been better than they were in his previous call-ups, and I think that’s what’s given him success.

“And for (Pastrnak), he’s just an 18-year-old playing off a lot of adrenaline and excitement. He’s learning every day, and it’s good to see him growing game after game. You kind of have to stay on them because it’s not perfect yet. . . . But with that, we still have to play with that same kind of confidence and attitude that we’ve had, which has been in the right place since our line’s been put together.”

Lucic’s message to his linemates has been to be mindful of their responsibilities on the ice. And delivering that message has helped him maintain his own game, which has a tendency to slip.

“I’m just trying to talk to them to No. 1 bring what they can bring, bring that skill set and bring that youth energy and bring that speed and that playmaking ability,” Lucic said. “But also, you kind of have to stay on them so that you don’t get comfortable and that you’re making the right plays at the right time.

“It helps me having come here as such a young guy as a 19-year-old. Sometimes when things go really well, you tend to forget the little things. And I think it’s just reminding them — and myself and as a whole line — to do the little things that will give us success. . . . We’re having a lot of fun doing it, and we have to stay on each other to continue contributing to this hockey club.”

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The Bruins still have some work to do before they actually qualify for the postseason, but individual tickets and single-game suite rentals for three potental first-round games will go on sale Friday at 11 a.m.

Individual tickets will be available at the Garden box office, on bostonbruins.com, on the Bruins mobile app and at Ticketmaster.