Lucic has advice for Seguin, excited for Savard

WILMINGTON — It wasn’t too long ago that left wing Milan Lucic was the most popular Bruins rookie. Now preparing for his fourth season in the NHL, the 22-year-old Lucic can look back on his experience in the 2007-08 season and offer some perspective on what second overall pick Tyler Seguin might go through with the Bruins this year.

“I remember my first year, there were things I needed to do to adjust to this level and adjust to this game,” Lucic said. “There was stuff that I worked on for the first three months that I was here, just little things. You just can’t get frustrated when things aren’t going your way, you’ve just got to keep working at it.

“One thing that I always looked at when I was young like that, I just went out there and played. I didn’t want to let any type of expectations or any type of pressures get to me. I just wanted to go out there and play and have fun with it and enjoy the time that I was here.”

Seguin isn’t the only newcomer Lucic is psyched about. Lucic is generally grinning at all times, but he spoke with a great deal of excitement when asked about Nathan Horton.

“He’s a big body. He can skate and he can score,” Lucic said of Horton. “That’s the expectations on him is just to do that. Obviously, he’s going to be a big part of our team and big part of the right wingers. Hopefully it doesn’t take him too long to find his game in our system here. We’ve got some pretty good centermen here that we can match him up with, so I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

The centerman figured to be the best match with Horton might be Marc Savard, who was reportedly shopped by the team at points during the offseason. The rumors led to Savard admitting that he was “hurt” by the idea of the team trading him, but Lucic has been in contact with his friend this summer and has been training harder than he ever has in anticipation of the 2010-11 season.

Though Lucic said he’s excited to see what kind of shape Savard in is after such a good offseason, he is first and foremost glad that none of what was written about Savard came true.

“Clearly they were all rumors,” Lucic said. “Everyone’s different, everyone takes it different. Obviously, Savvy took it the way he did and his feelings were a little bit hurt. I’m happy that he’s still a part of this team because I felt in the three years I’ve been here, he’s been one of the guys that I’ve been closest with, and obviously we have our special bond off and on the ice. I’m happy that he’s back and I hope he’s happy that he’s still around, too.”

Lucic played in only 50 games last year due to a nagging ankle injury but is skating now with any hindrance or tape. He felt he was able to get into a groove in the playoffs, when he had nine points in 13 games, and feels that if he can keep it up, he’ll be effective as ever.

“I felt like at the end of the season there against Philly, I felt like I played my best hockey and I thought I was good and strong with the puck, being able to be hard with the puck and be that physical presence,” Lucic said. “It’s basically the same thing. Just go out there and do that. If I’m just being a physical presence out there, everything always seems to take care of itself.”