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Former Oilers forward Milan Lucic announces retirement
Photo credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 9, 2026, 11:00 EDTUpdated: Jun 9, 2026, 11:17 EDT
Milan Lucic’s career has come to an end.
The former Edmonton Oilers forward, who had been struggling to find work in North America, announced on Sunday that he’s retiring.
“Looking back on my career, I feel truly grateful to have fulfilled my dream of playing professional hockey, culminating with a Stanley Cup win in 2011 with the Boston Bruins,” said Lucic, as part of a statement released by the NHL Players’ Association.
“I want to especially thank the Bruins for giving me my start in professional hockey and for instilling the confidence to reach new heights as a player.”
Lucic and the Oilers are tied together in franchise history. In 2016, general manager Peter Chiarelli made the biggest unrestricted free agent signing in Edmonton’s league history, inking Lucic to a seven-year contract worth $42 million.
In terms of adding a player from outside the organization, the Lucic contract remains the highest-dollar figure the Oilers have ever given a free agent, more money than Zach Hyman’s deal at $38.5 million.
Lucic’s best days weren’t in Edmonton
At one time, Lucic was seen as a premier power forward in the game with the Boston Bruins and the Los Angeles Kings. He was coming off his fourth 20-goal season and 50-plus point campaign in his one-off season with LA.
When he arrived in Edmonton in 2016-17, though, he was about to hit the career downslope.
Chiarelli was looking to make bold moves and beef up the forward ranks, especially with Connor McDavid missing half his rookie season due to injury. Just days before the signing, Chiarelli dealt Taylor Hall for Adam Larsson, and some of the justification was they created more cap space to sign Lucic to a $6 million contract.
The early returns were strong.
Lucic was a threat on the power play, scoring 12 of his 23 goals and half of his 50 points on the man advantage.
However, his five-on-five play was already suffering, and he would hit a significant wall next year, scoring just 10 goals in 2017-18 and six tallies in 2018-19.
The writing was on the wall. Looking to get out of the contract, the Oilers swapped Lucic for James Neal and a conditional third-round pick, as the Flames forward had only been there one season.
Infamously, Neal scored 19 goals in 55 games, with one of the conditions on the Flames getting the pick was Neal scoring 21 or more goals. With COVID shutting down the remainder of the season, the league determined the Oilers still had to send the Flames the pick, despite not hitting that benchmark.
Lucic finished out that contract with Calgary.
After being charged with domestic assault, a case that was eventually dropped after his wife filed for divorce, Lucic attempted a comeback this past season, playing five games in the AHL with the Springfield Thunderbirds before going to the Elite Ice Hockey League in England.
Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and co-host of PreGaming and Oilersnation After Dark. He’s also been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years of news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, Menzies collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues. Follow him on X at Menzies_4.
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