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Photo by Greg Southam / Postmedia

Less is more with Lucic

How should Lucic be utilized? Essentially as a second/third line grinding winger and one who should transition — and likely sooner than later — from being a power play specialist to a penalty kill specialist.

I can see Lucic doing well on the Oilers, thriving even, in a Matt Hendricks-plus role. Hendricks was a slow, not very skilled but high character, hard-hitting, super-hustling winger who helped the Oilers cause well into his 30s by knowing and accepting his role and making the utter most of every opportunity. Lucic has to reorient himself as the new Hendricks, only with somewhat higher expectations, as Lucic’s skillset is much greater than Hendricks’ skillset.

For now Lucic can most likely do best when teamed with other players who play heavy-ish hockey at the same speed as him. He should be given a lengthy run of games with Leon Draisaitl as his centre, as Draisaitl certainly fits that bill. Ryan Strome and Jujhar Khaira also fit the bill, as does Zack Kassian. If Strome or Khaira is Lucic’s centre, and not Draisaitl, that would mean Lucic is a $6 million winger on the third line.

The most dedicated critics of Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli will love that and cry out they bow have proof the signing was a failure. But who cares? Critics will always cry out in glee. If Lucic can help the team win in a third line role on a line with Khaira and Strome, that’s a win for the player, the team and sensible Oilers fans.

As for special teams, Lucic gets the job done well in front of the net, but the Oilers top power play unit has had trouble winning loose pucks, partly because both Lucic and Mark Letestu are dreadfully lacking in skating agility by NHL standards. Against the Calgary Flames when Strome and Drake Caggiula took their place, the Oilers top power play unit suddenly looked far more functional. Perhaps the top unit can still thrive with Lucic, but only if every other player is fast.

In the longer term, though, I can see Lucic doing well on the penalty kill, not the power play. Hendricks showed that a smart, slower player can do well in that role if he puts his heart into shot blocking, sound positional play and self-sacrifice. If Lucic is the leader he’s cracked up to be, and I suspect he is, then such a transition to this role could also work out well for him and the team.

For Lucic and the Oilers, less is more. Expect less, deploy him in less difficult situations — please, no more 3-on-3 overtime fiascos — and this player can be an asset in Edmonton, even on his big ticket. Make sense?