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4 Bruins Primed to Disappoint in 2023-24 Season

By Devon Platana

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 06: David Pastrnak #88 of the Boston Bruins skates against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the first period at TD Garden on April 06, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 06: David Pastrnak #88 of the Boston Bruins skates against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the first period at TD Garden on April 06, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /
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3. Milan Lucic

A big part of the Bruins fanbase was thrilled this offseason when the team signed Milan Lucic to a one-year deal up to $1.5 million. The rugged winger spent his first eight NHL seasons with Boston, tallying 342 points across 566 games.

While it’s nice that Lucic returned to Beantown to, presumably, end his professional career, some fans might be blinded by his name value.

On the ice, this isn’t the Lucic that most fans remember. He’s 35 years old now while being slower and less physical before. His offense also isn’t what it used to be. He only scored seven goals in 2022-23 — his second-fewest in an 82-game campaign — and hasn’t recorded more than 23 points in the last six seasons.

His advanced stats show that a bounce-back year is even unlikelier. Lucic’s minus-2.8 goals above expected ranked No. 213 among 314 forwards who played at least 800 minutes last season. He also struggled to hit his targets as 33% of his unblocked shots missed the net — 24th-worst among the same 314 players.

While Lucic deserves all the fanfare he’ll get and it’ll be nice to see No. 17 back in Boston, it’s clear that his on-ice play isn’t what it was. Any Bruins fans who haven’t been following his career lately will likely be left disappointed if they’re expecting the Lucic of old.

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