Ducks Sign Cruz Lucius To Entry-Level Contract

The Anaheim Ducks have announced the signing of prospect forward Cruz Lucius to an entry-level contract. The Ducks acquired Lucius’ signing rights in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins yesterday.

Anaheim did not disclose the financial terms of Lucius’ contract outside of the fact that it carries a two-year term. Lucius will be eligible for restricted free agency in July 2028, at the age of 24. The Penguins’ exclusive rights to sign Lucius were set to expire as Lucius is not returning to college hockey, and GM Kyle Dubas told the media that Lucius had made it known he would not be signing in Pittsburgh. Instead, he’s landed in Anaheim.

Set to make his professional debut at the age of 22, Lucius is not widely expected to break camp on the Ducks’ NHL roster. Instead, he’s more likely to begin his pro career in the AHL, with the San Diego Gulls.

The 6’0″, 178-pound forward was an exceptional scorer at the collegiate level, posting 15 goals and 46 points in 36 games as a senior on the Arizona State Sun Devils. He will have to prove he can translate the lethal offensive ability he flashed in the NCAA to the professional level, where the level of competition is a few notches more difficult.

For the Ducks, Lucius’ signing is a nice, zero-cost boost to the team’s prospect pool. Back in March, Anaheim’s farm system ranked No. 14 in the NHL by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, and they’ve now added the No. 10 prospect in the Penguins’ system, in Wheeler’s view. At the time, he said Lucius “has a chance to be a complementary playmaking winger” in the NHL, but noted his below-average skating “is the primary concern with his projection.”

As mentioned previously, Lucius’ odds of earning an NHL spot in training camp next month are slim. The Ducks spent in free agency to reinforce their bottom-six, so it’s entirely possible, if not likely, that Lucius would have to dislodge a veteran to earn an NHL spot. Although he is a legitimate prospect, it seems far more likely that the Ducks will opt to devote roster spots to well-compensated veterans such as A.J. Greer ($4.25MM), Frank Vatrano ($4.571MM), and Jeff Malott ($1.875MM).

The fact that Lucius can be sent down without needing to clear waivers doesn’t help his near-term NHL odds either, as the same cannot be said for other young Ducks vying for NHL roles, such as roster hopeful Nikita Nesterenko.

With that said, that doesn’t mean the NHL isn’t in Lucius’ future at some point down the line. If he can hit the ground running in the AHL and find a way to quickly adapt to the rigors of the professional game, it wouldn’t be out of the question for him to earn a call-up at some point in 2026-27.