Mario Lucia, who born to Joyce and Don Lucia, celebrated his 23rd birthday just a month ago, and now will be fighting for a roster spot with the Minnesota Wild. His father Don of course has coached the Minnesota Golden Gophers Mens Hockey program since 1999, and this season will be his 17th behind the bench at Mariucci Arena. Mario’s brother, Tony Lucia, was drafted by the San Jose Sharks organization in the 2005 draft and played 4 seasons with the Gophers under their father.
Mario chose a different path though. Opting instead to take his college talents to Notre Dame, his father’s alma mater, where he played 151 games on the wing over 4 seasons and registered 61 goals, 21 of which coming in his Junior year with the Irish.