An Interview with Milan Lucic on Winning Gold at the World Cup

The joy of Canadians (Lucic on the right). | Photo: iihf.com

(TAMPERE, from our correspondent) Seventh final appearance in the last eight years. And the fourth cup for the world champions. Canada is phenomenal on the international stage, but for Milan Lucic it was only the first tournament in his country’s jersey. At the end of his career, he raised the cup over his head… “Let’s go have a few beers.” I have to stop talking to you and go celebrate,” he laughed among the journalists with a gold medal around his neck.

“This was exactly the reason why I wanted to come to the World Cup. I wanted to experience what it was like to win a gold medal. They found a place for me in the lineup, which I really appreciated. I wanted to contribute as much as possible to the whole team, do my best for success and make the most of this opportunity. It was a long month, but in the end all the hard work paid off,” said Lucic after the final.

Can you describe the immediate feelings of joy?
It’s another huge success for Canada. Germany played well in both the first period and the second period. It was definitely not easy. But the third period decided, just like in the semi-final match against Latvia. The failures are in the past, now is the best part, the victories.

Does it compare to winning in the NHL?
Nothing compares to the Stanley Cup, but to have the gold around your neck… I had my whole family here – my wife, my kids, my mom. I had maybe twelve people here who can celebrate the medal with me. That means a lot to me! I just feel grateful to be a part of this party. It was a great group of people.

Milan Lucic in the WC final. | Photo: Markéta Křížová

For an experienced hockey player, it’s quite a touching moment, isn’t it?
You know, I got to represent Canada for the very first time in my life. It means everything to me! I would definitely recommend it to all NHL players! Great experience, I’m so glad I came…

All your teammates talk about you as a legend, do you feel that way?
I? (laughs) I’m not a legend, but the team is. We had an excellent team. We all played as one and did not give up until the last moment. We did our best to succeed and now we have gold medals around our necks.

Did you also have some difficult moments when you thought maybe it wasn’t ideal?
There are challenging moments in hockey, but we never stopped believing in success. I trusted everyone in the team, from the goalkeeper to the forwards. And that’s a big part of all of us, that we can celebrate such an achievement, be here together and have gold.

So for Canada, every medal is a success?
Always, honey of course the biggest. We never take it for granted. Yes, we are Canada, we expect wins and goals, but Canadians value every gold very much. It is fantastic that we could do another medal for the country.

What was it like playing with teams like Latvia and Germany? Both teams strove for historic success, playing on the edge of self-sacrifice.
They brought the best players to the tournament, that’s why they rewrote history. I think it was good for us to play with such teams because they were also big challenges for us. In all cases, we had to earn the victory and fight until the end. As I said, the third period was decisive for us in both games. Both Latvia and Germany have credits from us for this tournament. I am happy that I could play against such teams. None of them made it easy for us. We had to work it all out.

What is your plan for the summer now?
Let’s go have a few beers. I have to stop talking to you and go celebrate. (laughs) And then? For the next month I will be thinking about the next step in my career. I will try to find out what would suit me best in order to move a little in life again. I have a lot of scenarios running through my head, and I’ll go over them all a few more times. But right now I want to enjoy the win.

Especially when some people underestimated you this time?
We’ve heard some criticism that we’re not a strong Canadian selection. But I believed that we could do great things. We formed a strong group and we improved with each match. That makes us champions in the end…