The Eagles gave Lucas a second chance at AFL football when he was picked up in Wednesday's NAB AFL Rookie Draft.
The 23-year-old played 42 matches with Carlton over five seasons after being recruited as a first-round draft pick in 2009.
He said he was surprised to be delisted after being told he was a required player and he still hasn't spoken to Malthouse about it.
"I was a bit the same as Brock McLean, I didn't really get a phone call from the coach Mick," Lucas said.
"But the CEO rang me while I was in Bali on a family holiday, so that was a bit of a dampener.
"But footy is a pretty tough business. I just got a call from Andrew McKay, and just said 'Thanks for the five years service and everything you've done'.
"I think we've got them (in round one of the NAB Challenge) and then round two of the AFL season. So best-case scenario, hopefully I'm lining up against them and having a good crack against them. It will be interesting but we'll see what happens."
Lucas said he was grateful to get another opportunity at the club he grew up barracking for after getting over the disappointment of being delisted.
"Once you get told you're a required player for the next season and then all of a sudden you get the chop, it's surprising," he said.
"But there wasn't much I could do. The season was over. It is a great opportunity to come back to a great club and start over here."
Following his holiday in Bali, Lucas returned to Melbourne and trained with delisted Demon and now new Geelong recruit Sam Blease, despite the fact neither had a guarantee of being redrafted.
"It was pretty tough," Lucas said.
"I was running in Melbourne and Sam Blease was there and he was in exactly the same situation.
"We were running together and picking each other's brains a bit. We felt like we had a lot to offer in our careers.
"So we were working pretty hard. If anything it probably makes you hungrier. You're a lot more desperate. I think that's going to shine through this year."
Lucas was so keen to impress his new club that he dashed straight to West Coast training after he was selected in the rookie draft early on Wednesday morning Perth time.
The midfielder said he probably didn't handle the expectations of being a first-round draft pick at Carlton, but he believed he has learnt from the experience.
"The mental side of the game where the public don't see a lot of it … I learnt a lot about mental strength," Lucas said.
"Although it was a quite challenging experience it was good to go through. I think I'm better for it."
