Notre Dame junior left winger Mario Lucia announced on Friday morning that he will return to the Irish for his senior season.
A second round pick of his hometown Minnesota Wild in the 2011 NHL Draft, Lucia led the Irish with 21 goals in 2014-15. He also contributed 11 assists for 32 points, ranking third on the squad. The 21 goals were the most scored by a Notre Dame skater since the 2010-11 season when Anders Lee scored 24 and T.J. Tynan netted 23.
“I still have an opportunity here to improve things in my game and get better before I go professional,” Lucia said. “We have a good group coming back with good leadership and a great goalie in Cal (Petersen). We have an opportunity to be very successful this year and I look forward to helping lead us back to the NCAAs.”
Lucia's father, Don, played at Notre Dame from 1977-81 and is the winningest coach in Minnesota’s history.
“I’ve seen players leave Minnesota early and sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t,” Mario said. “The best opportunity for me is right here. There is no wrong choice but Notre Dame is where my heart is at. The minor leagues will still be waiting for me after this season but you only have four years in college. I’m looking forward to my senior year and, after that, focusing on my professional career.”
Last year the Irish went 15-6-4 in games where Lucia recorded at least one point and were just 3-13-1 when Lucia was held off of the scoring ledger.
A second round pick of his hometown Minnesota Wild in the 2011 NHL Draft, Lucia led the Irish with 21 goals in 2014-15. He also contributed 11 assists for 32 points, ranking third on the squad. The 21 goals were the most scored by a Notre Dame skater since the 2010-11 season when Anders Lee scored 24 and T.J. Tynan netted 23.
“I still have an opportunity here to improve things in my game and get better before I go professional,” Lucia said. “We have a good group coming back with good leadership and a great goalie in Cal (Petersen). We have an opportunity to be very successful this year and I look forward to helping lead us back to the NCAAs.”
Lucia's father, Don, played at Notre Dame from 1977-81 and is the winningest coach in Minnesota’s history.
“I’ve seen players leave Minnesota early and sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t,” Mario said. “The best opportunity for me is right here. There is no wrong choice but Notre Dame is where my heart is at. The minor leagues will still be waiting for me after this season but you only have four years in college. I’m looking forward to my senior year and, after that, focusing on my professional career.”
Last year the Irish went 15-6-4 in games where Lucia recorded at least one point and were just 3-13-1 when Lucia was held off of the scoring ledger.
