Mats Zuccarello

At 36 years old, Mats Zuccarello has this physical status:

Playing career

Zuccarello joined Frisk in Norway's top league as an 18-year-old. In 2005–06, he scored 8 points in 21 games as a rookie. He climbed to 59 points over 43 games, third in league scoring behind Jonas Solberg Andersen and Mathis Olimb in the upcoming season. Zuccarello was instrumental in the Frisk's best regular season record in the league in 2007–08. Zuccarello led to his second consecutive season in scoring with 64 points, while Frisk teammates Chris Abbott, Cam Abbott, and Marcus Eriksson were ranked as the top four GET-ligaen scorers. As Frisk advanced to the Finals, where they were defeated by the Storhamar Dragons in six games, Zuccarello scored 27 points in 15 playoff games.

Zuccarello, a three-years veteran of the GET-ligaen, has joined Modo Hockey of Sweden's premier league, Sweden's top league, Elitserien. He came in third place in team scoring with 40 points in 35 games in his first season with Modo. He coached the team with 23 goals last season. He was named the league's Most Valuable Player with a score of 64 points, leading to the award of the Guldhjeldhjmen as the league's Most Valuable Player, according to Elitserien players.

Zuccarello was signed by the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a free agent in the summer of 2010 and was given a two-year, entry-level deal. He began his 2010-11 season with the Hartford Wolf Pack/Connecticut Whale, the Rangers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, to adapt to the North American style of hockey and rink dimensions. After an injury to right winger Marián Gábork, he was called up to the Rangers on December 22, 2010. He made his NHL debut against the Tampa Bay Lightning on December 23, 2010, becoming the seventh Norwegian player to play in the NHL as well as the second undrafted one. In his NHL debut, Zuccarello ran 17 minutes and 52 seconds of ice time, with two shots on target. In the shootout against Lightning goaltender Dan Ellis, who stayed tied after overtime, Zuccarello scored in the shootout against Lightning goaltender Dan Ellis. However, the Rangers lost the game 4–3. Despite being called back to the Whale right after the game, the Rangers recalled him for their next game against the New York Islanders on December 27. He earned his first NHL point during the game, tying defenceman Anders Myrvold for the Norwegian player with the fewest games played before earning a single NHL point. The Rangers won the game 7–2. Zuccarello scored his first NHL goal against goaltender Cam Ward three minutes into overtime, leading the Rangers to a 2–1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes nine days later. He was reassigned to Connecticut after playing 41 games for the Rangers on April 1, 2011.

When the Rangers lost 2–1 against the Washington Capitals on April 13, 2011, Zuccarello became the second Norwegian to participate in NHL post-season action.

Zuccarello announced on June 1st that he had signed a two-year deal with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). However, after the 2012–13 NHL lockout, he returned to the NHL and the Rangers.

Zuccarello reached an agreement with the New York Rangers on a one-year deal on March 28, 2013. Zuccarello appeared in the last 15 games of the 2012–13 season, assisting the Rangers in the postseason. In Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Washington Capitals, he appeared in all 12 Ranger playoff games, tallying his first playoff appearance.

Zuccarello re-signed with the Rangers at the end of the 2012–13 season for another one-year deal, worth $1.15 million. Zuccarello's 2013-14 season was a record-breaking season. In his career, he set career records in goals, assists, and team-highs in points, helping the Rangers advance to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they meet the Los Angeles Kings. Despite New York's loss to the series 4–1, Zuccarello made history by becoming the first Norwegian to ever play in the Stanley Cup Finals. His all-around game was also a step forward throughout the season, as he established himself as a brutal worker with the ability to penetrate his opponents' skin. His work was recognized by the 2013–14 Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award, which was given to him.

Zuccarello agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Rangers on July 22, 2014.

Zuccarello has committed to a four-year, $18 million contract that will run through the 2018-19 season. As the Rangers won the Presidents' Trophy with the league's best regular season record, he came in fifth on the team in scoring, alongside linemate Rick Nash, who had the second-most goals in the league. Zuccarello was struck in the head by a shot from his own teammate, Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh early in the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs. Zuccarello suffered a serious brain injury and concussion, and it would most likely miss the remainder of the playoffs. However, rumors grew as the Rangers continued their campaign that if the Rangers made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Rangers' Jason Martel showed that he would be available if the Rangers' continued their quest. However, they lost in seven games to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2015 Eastern Conference Finals, snapping their season.

Zuccarello got off to a good start in his return, becoming the team's leader in scoring at the start of the 2015–16 season. Zuccarello scored a hat-trick (the first of his NHL career) against the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 30th, and he scored the game-winning goal against the Maple Leafs on November 15th in another game against the Maple Leafs with less than a minute remaining in regulation. Zuccarello scored a career-high 26 goals and 35 assists in his comeback season. Zuccarello's win of the Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award for the 2015–16 season, coupled with his outstanding play, particularly after the aforementioned injury in the previous postseason, culminated in his selection as a finalist for the Bill Masterton Trophy.

Zuccarello was named an alternate captain of the Rangers on October 4th, 2017-18 season. In a game against the Carolina Hurricanes, which the Rangers defeated 6–3, Zuccarello scored his 100th career NHL goal. Zuccarello made history by becoming the ninth player in Rangers history to lead the team in three seasons, joining Jaromr Jágr, Wayne Gretzky, Phil Esposito, Andy Bathgate, Blake Hextall Sr., Bill Cook, and Frank Boucher on October 23rd.

Zuccarello was traded to the Dallas Stars on February 23, 2019, in exchange for a 2019 conditional second-round pick and a 2020 conditional third-round pick. He made his debut against the Chicago Blackhawks the same day. During the second period, he scored his first goal for the team during the second period but then sustained an upper-body injury that forced him to miss the third period of play. Following that, the Stars revealed that he was supposed to miss at least four weeks to recover. Zuccarello returned to the playoffs, but the Stars were eliminated by the St. Louis Blues in double overtime of game seven.

Zuccarello, who had left the Stars as a free agent, has signed a five-year, $30 million contract with the Minnesota Wild on July 1, 2019.

Zuccarello set a new record for most assists in a season on April 17, 2022, beating teammate Kirill Kaprizov and Pierre-Marc Bouchard (2007-08 season), who tied the record at 50. He also reached his 500th career point, making him the 62nd active NHL player to reach that number since being inducted in 2010.

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