from Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe,

He could be the behemoth that chewed up the Blackhawks in the Bruins’ 3-2 loss Dec. 11 to Chicago, the NHL’s best team. In the third period, Lucic scooped up a loose puck in the defensive zone. He accelerated past Andrew Shaw. He shook off Patrick Sharp’s stick check like it was a toothpick. Lucic capped the rush by bulling through Michal Rozsival and Klas Dahlbeck before dishing to Torey Krug for a net-front strike.

Or Lucic could be the bystander who submitted a 0-0—0 line two nights later. In the Bruins’ 3-2 shootout loss to the Senators, Lucic landed just one puck on goal and offered little impact outside of a second-period fight with Mark Borowiecki.

Through 35 games this season, Lucic had six goals and 11 assists for 17 points. He’s been without David Krejci, his regular center, for 20 games. But that’s no excuse, not when Alex Ovechkin (16-12—28), Zach Parise (13-14—27), Daniel Sedin (8-22—30), Patrick Marleau (7-20—27), and Henrik Zetterberg (7-23—30) are the only left wings earning more annually than Lucic.

So if projecting how Lucic will play short term is such a challenge, consider applying the same exercise to the left wing’s next contract. It’s why figuring out how to progress with Lucic — or without him— is one of the trickiest challenges on the Bruins’ agenda.

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