Ducks Acquire Cruz Lucius From Penguins

The Anaheim Ducks have taken advantage of a bad situation for the Pittsburgh Penguins. According to a team announcement, the Ducks have acquired forward prospect Cruz Lucius from the Penguins in exchange for future considerations.

Lucius, 22, was one of a handful of collegiate prospects set to enter unrestricted free agency on August 15th. It was well known for some time that Lucius would be one of the several to have their signing rights expire, as he informed Pittsburgh in early April that he would not sign an entry-level contract with them.

General Manager of the Penguins, Kyle Dubas, was quoted at the time, saying, “(Lucius and his agent) informed us that that he was not going to be signing in Pittsburgh for a few reasons that’s up to him to share. It’s a personal thing for him. We felt we had a great opportunity for him, and the proof is in the pudding on the development side, but players are entitled to make their decision, and I don’t think we’re at the position here anymore where we have to beg people to come.”

Similarly to the situation with Stiven Sardarian and the Buffalo Sabres, Lucius never filed his NCAA departure paperwork with the NHL Central Registry, likely because he knew the Penguins were nearing a trade. Now, Anaheim will hold his rights indefinitely. Should Lucius file his departure paperwork in the next few days, the Ducks would then have 30 days to sign him to a professional contract of some kind.

Lucius is an intriguing prospect for a few reasons. Drafted 124th overall by the Penguins in the 2022 NHL Draft, he lacks significant draft pedigree but has achieved considerable success in the NCAA.

He initially began his collegiate tenure at the University of Wisconsin. In his first two seasons with the Badgers, Lucius scored 24 goals and 68 points in 70 games with a -7 rating. Likely influenced by the dismissal of Head Coach Tony Granato after the 2022-23 season, Lucius transferred to Arizona State University for his junior and senior seasons.

Outside of some injury concerns in his first season, Lucius’ tenure with the Sun Devils was largely a success. In his final season, the Lawrence, KS native registered 15 goals and 46 points in 36 games with a +1 rating.