The Boston Bruins say veteran forward Milan Lucic is entering the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program following his arrest over the weekend for assaulting his wife.
"The Boston Bruins have been in communication with the Lucic family, offering our support and assistance. The organization is supportive of Milan’s decision to enter the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance program. He remains on an indefinite leave of absence from the team. With respect to both his ongoing rehabilitation and the legal process, we will have no further comment at this time," the Bruins said in a statement Tuesday night.
The NHL and NHLPA started the player assistance program in 1996, giving players access to a confidential phone line and counselors in each city in the league. The jointly funded group assists players and their families with mental health, substance abuse and other matters.
There is no set time that a player must spend in the program, but they can't leave it without being cleared. Players can continue to get paid while they are in the player assistance program.
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters.
Lucic is charged with assault and battery after his wife reported him to police in the early hours of Saturday morning, saying she had been choked. The court entered a not guilty plea on his behalf at his arraignment Tuesday, which only lasted about six minutes. A pretrial date was scheduled for Jan. 19, but Lucic will not be required to appear in person.
The Vancouver native did not speak during Tuesday's hearing, other than to briefly acknowledge the judge.
Assistant District Attorney Marc Tillman read the facts of the case from the police report and said he was only seeking personal recognizance bail based on Lucic's record, along with bail conditions including a no abuse order and that Lucic refrain from drinking alcohol for the duration of the case.
Lucic's attorney did not object to those conditions.
According to the police report from Saturday's incident, Lucic, 35, was upset over a cellphone and at one point, he allegedly grabbed his wife's hair and pulled her back, telling her she wasn't going anywhere.
Lucic's wife told police that during the night, her husband could not locate his phone after returning to the apartment after a night out. She said he began yelling at her, demanding his phone back, believing she had hidden it. She told him she didn't have his phone and didn't know where it was. That's when the assault occurred.
When asked by police if Lucic had strangled her, she reportedly said no.
Officers said Lucic appeared intoxicated, telling them "nothing had happened" but refusing to explain any further. He was then arrested.
Police said they saw a broken lamp on one of the nightstands inside the apartment and what appeared to be a small amount of broken glass on the floor.
The Bruins announced over the weekend that Lucic was taking an indefinite leave of absence from the team and expressed support for his family. He has not played since Oct. 21 due to injury.
Although the maximum penalty he faces is 2-1/2 years in prison and a $5,000 fine, NBC10 Boston legal analyst Michael Coyne said it likely won’t come to that.
“Since it is a close family member, what often times happens is they reconcile, move to counseling and the witness doesn’t testify," he said.
Lucic is a veteran of over 1,300 NHL games with the Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames. He won the Stanley Cup with Boston in 2011 and is back with the team after signing a one-year free agent contract last summer worth $1 million with $500,000 in possible additional incentives.
His future with the Bruins is now in question.
“That’s a huge decision for the player, for the family, for the team and for the league. So that’s guesswork. I don’t know what’s going to happen with Milan," said Fluto Shinzawa, who covers the Bruins for The Athletic.
