Edmonton Oilers: Milan Lucic is One of NHL’s Best Fighters

The Edmonton Oilers knew they were getting toughness when they signed forward Milan Lucic, and now, they arguably have one of the roughest, toughest rosters in the NHL. Lucic proves to be the perfect pickup for the Oilers: a veteran, decent and consistent scorer who can also lay on the hits and play a strong defensive game.

However, there’s something that many fans haven’t been talking about, and that is his fighting ability. And fans should talk about it, because Lucic’s ability to drop the gloves is something special.

Sportsnet recently posed a piece about some of the toughest guys in the NHL, and the best fighters. Darnell Nurse made the honorable mention list, but even more importantly, Lucic is on the list as one of the best fighters in the league. He is also said not to be messed with.

Lucic carries a hot temper and a short fuse, meaning that it is pretty easy to make him angry. And when he gets angry, there is no containing the beast.

In 104 fights spanning over his time in the WHL and NHL, Lucic is 72-12, and has drawn even in only 28 matches. In 22 of those fights, he has drawn blood, and he has knocked out his opponent three times. When it comes to his NHL brawls, he is 43-10, and has only drawn even 11 times. He has played three seasons where he went undefeated, one of them being this past year, when he was 4-4-0.

This is something Edmonton needs. As Lucic stated after getting signed, no one is really afraid to ever play the Oilers. Sure, Nurse is tough, but no one truly fears a rookie who is willing to take on any opponent, whether it means a win or a loss. Patrick Maroon and Zack Kassian surely add onto the aggression and caution when it comes to matching up against them, but putting Lucic in the pot is something that makes the Oilers a hundred times bigger and a hundred times tougher.

Players are usually cautioned about taking on the 6-foot-3, 235 pound Lucic, since he is said to utilize all of his size and can pack a lot into a single punch.

Next: Edmonton Oilers: Defensive Trade Possibilities

Another strong suit about Lucic is that he is not the typical NHL enforcer who has one role. It is just a part of his anatomy that makes him an even better player. He’s an impressive two-way forward who also holds the ability to throw hits and drop the gloves if necessary, and there are not many players who are capable of doing such.