The old saying ''defence wins championships'' is quite true, but there are a lot of other factors that come into play, one of those other factors being every team needs a tough guy and or grittiness to go deep into the playoffs.
For example the Tampa Bay Lightning had Patrick Maroon throughout their two back-to-back cups, the Washington Capitals had their Tom Wilson and many other teams always had that go-to guy that would be willing to answer the bell if need be. One of the hottest enforcers still left in todays game is Ryan Reaves, the 6-foot-2, 225lb big bodied forward was reportedly mistreated by the New York Rangers and traded away to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for a fifth round pick.
Now it seems as if the Rangers regret mistreating their heart and soul of the roster and have been bullied around so much without Reaves that they are resorting to another gritty option, but this one comes as a surprise. That gritty option is Milan Lucic, who is currently with the Calgary Flames.
Lucic is currently being paid $6.25 million per year, but after this season his pricey contract will expire, making Lucic a solid option for any contending team is the Calgary Flames can retain up to 50% of his salary cap hit.
