If you walked into the parking lot of the Wayzata Ice Arena during hockey practice late last week, you might have caught sight of a truck window with the words "I [heart] Mario" written with window paint. Assuming the reference is to Mario Lucia, there are plenty of Wayzata High School hockey fans who would agree with that statement.
Mario, a junior forward at Wayzata, is the son of Gophers hockey head coach Don Lucia and the brother of NHL San Jose Sharks prospect Tony Lucia, and he is the highest-rated NHL draft-eligible high school player in Minnesota. There's a lot to like about him.
As mnhockeyprospects.com says, Lucia "sees the ice well and is not afraid to control the puck in traffic. Lucia has a good shot and has shown the ability to finish around the net. [He has] demonstrated that he can make tape-to-tape passes that have good velocity."
He's pretty impressive at what he does. And with such a well-known father, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that Mario could feel a little pressure to be impressive. He appears to handle it pretty well.
"Well, obviously, there's my name on the back of my jersey. I mean, it's not really literally on there, but people know who I am," Mario said. "My team expects a lot from me, because I'm one of the leaders on the team. I just want to bring it every night, and be a great contributor."
The left wing forward had short-term experience on the U.S. National Team Development Program Under-18 Squad in the fall of 2010. During that time, he went to Sweden with the team to play in the U18 Four Nations Cup. The team won three of its four games.
"He spent part of the fall there," Wayzata head coach Carl Davis said. "He played five weekends with them, and then he went back to the high school program."
"He was never expected to stay," Coach Davis added. "It was just a short-term opportunity for him to go and play with them for a period of time, knowing that he would come back to the high school program."
When it comes to college prospects, Mario won't have to worry too much about having enough options. The question is, whether he goes with the option of playing for his dad, like his older brother Tony did.
"Obviously, that will be an option, but it's so much pressure on me and my dad," Mario said, adding, "I don't even think he wants me to play for him. But if I want to go there, he'd be happy to have me. Otherwise, I can go to another school. I've got offers from other schools."
Two of them play in the WCHA, just like the Gophers do.
"Colorado (College) and Denver are the other two schools that I'm looking at other than Minnesota," he said.
Mario's family moved from Colorado to Minnesota when he was five, so he's got good feelings about that school. Denver is a good option, too.
In Mario's words, "Colorado is a nice city, and Denver is real nice, too, so it'll be a tough decision when I have to make it."
Chances are, he will make the right choice. He seems to have a good head on his slender body.
"He's a big kid -- six foot, two and a half inches. But he only weighs 185. He works so hard in the weight room," Coach Davis said. "He's the last one out of the weight room every day and we lift all year long, so he's just working so hard to get stronger."
Even if Mario is a bit on the lanky side, there's no doubt that the extra time in the gym is paying off. Just see for yourself. Take a look at Mario in the video and check out his abs, er, his interview.
All in all, Mario is a strong player and that is definitely an asset on his exceptional team.
"Hopefully," Mario said, "someday hockey will be my life and I will be able to make a career out of it."
Here's a little more about Mario:
Favorite Color: Yellow
Favorite Music: Rock
Favorite Book: "Where the Red Fern Grows"
Favorite Class: Science/Biology
Least Favorite Class: Math
Favorite Breakfast Food: Pancakes, bacon, and hash browns
Favorite TV Show: "Other than hockey, Criminal Minds"
Favorite Movie: "Anchorman"
Favorite Athletes: Sidney Crosby and Eric Staal
Lucky Charm: "I always wear my cross. I never take it off"
Most Prized Possession: "Probably my Bantam State Championship Banner."
If he could have any superhero power, it would be: To fly
If he could trade places with anybody for a day, it would be: Sidney Crosby.
Something most people don't know about him that would surprise them: "I play the trumpet, actually. I've been playing since the sixth grade."
