Mats Zuccarello facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mats Zuccarello |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg)
Zuccarello in 2015
|
|||
| Born | 1 September 1987 Oslo, Norway |
||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) | ||
| Weight | 179 lb (81 kg; 12 st 11 lb) | ||
| Position | Right wing | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team Former teams |
Minnesota Wild Frisk Tigers Modo Hockey New York Rangers Metallurg Magnitogorsk Dallas Stars |
||
| National team |  Norway |
||
| NHL Draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2004–present | ||
Mats André Zuccarello Aasen (born 1 September 1987) is a professional ice hockey player from Norway. He plays as a winger for the Minnesota Wild in the National Hockey League (NHL). Before joining the Wild, he also played for the New York Rangers and Dallas Stars.
Mats is known as one of the best Norwegian players to ever play in the NHL. He is one of only nine players from Norway to have made it to the NHL. In 2010, he won the Guldhjälmen award, which is given to the most valuable player in the Swedish Hockey League.
Contents
Early Life and Hockey Start
Mats Zuccarello grew up in Oslo, Norway. He started playing hockey when he was just five years old. He played for local teams like Hasle-Løren and Vålerenga.
Later, he was noticed by Frisk Asker, another hockey club. They offered him a special scholarship to a sports college. Mats accepted this offer to continue his hockey journey.
Mats has Italian family on his mother's side. His younger brother, Fabian, also plays ice hockey in Norway. His step-brother, Robin Dahlstrøm, played hockey in both Sweden and Norway.
Playing Career Highlights
Starting in Norway and Sweden
Mats began his professional career at 18 with Frisk in Norway's top league, the GET-ligaen. In his first season (2005–06), he scored 8 points. The next year, he greatly improved, scoring 59 points.
In the 2007–08 season, Mats helped Frisk have the best regular season record. He finished third in league scoring with 64 points. Frisk made it to the finals but lost.
After three seasons in Norway, Mats moved to Sweden. He joined Modo Hockey in the Elitserien, Sweden's top league. In his first year, he was third on his team in scoring with 40 points. The next season, he led the league with 64 points. This amazing performance earned him the Guldhjälmen award as the league's most valuable player.
Joining the New York Rangers
In 2010, Mats signed a contract with the New York Rangers in the NHL. He first played for their minor league team, the Connecticut Whale. This helped him get used to the North American style of hockey.
On 22 December 2010, Mats was called up to the Rangers. He made his NHL debut the next day. He became the seventh Norwegian player to play in the NHL. In his first game, he even scored in a shootout!
Nine days later, Mats got his first NHL assist. In his sixth game, he scored his first NHL goal in overtime. This helped the Rangers win the game. Mats played 41 games for the Rangers that season.
In 2011, Mats became only the second Norwegian to play in the NHL playoffs.
Time in Russia and Return to New York
In 2012, Mats signed a two-year contract with Metallurg Magnitogorsk in Russia's KHL league. However, he returned to the New York Rangers after the NHL lockout in 2013.
Mats signed a new contract with the Rangers in March 2013. He played in the final 15 games of the season. He helped the Rangers reach the playoffs again. He scored his first playoff goal in Game 7 against the Washington Capitals.
The 2013–14 season was a big one for Mats. He scored his highest number of goals and assists. He helped the Rangers reach the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals. This made him the first Norwegian player to ever play in the Stanley Cup Finals! Even though the Rangers lost, Mats was recognized for his hard work. He won the Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award.
Mats continued to play well for the Rangers. In the 2014–15 season, he signed a four-year contract. He was a key player as the Rangers won the Presidents' Trophy. This award goes to the team with the best regular season record.
During the 2015 playoffs, Mats suffered a serious head injury. He was hit by a shot from his own teammate. This injury kept him out for the rest of the playoffs.
Mats made a strong comeback in the 2015–16 season. He quickly became the team's top scorer. He even scored his first NHL hat-trick (three goals in one game). He finished the season with a career-high 26 goals. For his amazing effort, he won the Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award again. He was also a finalist for the Bill Masterton Trophy, which is given to a player who shows great sportsmanship and dedication.
In 2017, Mats was named an alternate captain for the Rangers. In 2018, he scored his 100th NHL goal. He also became one of only nine Rangers players to lead the team in points for three seasons in a row.
Moving to Dallas and Minnesota
In February 2019, Mats was traded to the Dallas Stars. He scored his first goal with the Stars in his very first game. However, he got injured in that same game and missed several weeks. He returned for the playoffs, but the Stars were eliminated.
On 1 July 2019, Mats signed a five-year contract with the Minnesota Wild. He quickly became an important player for his new team.
On 17 April 2022, Mats broke a Wild team record. He recorded his 51st and 52nd assists of the season. This made him the player with the most assists in a single season for the Wild. In the same game, he also reached 500 career points in the NHL.
In September 2023, Mats signed a two-year contract extension with the Wild. This means he will stay with the team until the 2025–26 season.
International Play
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing Team Europe | ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Cup | ||
| Silver | 2016 Toronto | |
Mats has proudly represented Norway in many international tournaments. He played in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
He also played for Team Europe in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. His team won a silver medal in that tournament.
Career Statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2003–04 | Frisk Tigers | NOR U18 | 24 | 23 | 14 | 37 | 44 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2003–04 | Frisk Tigers | NOR U19 | 20 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2004–05 | Frisk Tigers | NOR U18 | 12 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Frisk Tigers | NOR U19 | 27 | 19 | 17 | 36 | 16 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 2004–05 | Frisk Tigers | UPC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Frisk Tigers | NOR U19 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2005–06 | Frisk Tigers | UPC | 21 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2006–07 | Frisk Tigers | GET | 43 | 34 | 25 | 59 | 36 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 | ||
| 2006–07 | Frisk Tigers | NOR U19 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 2007–08 | Frisk Tigers | GET | 33 | 24 | 40 | 64 | 48 | 15 | 12 | 15 | 27 | 24 | ||
| 2008–09 | Modo Hockey | SEL | 35 | 12 | 28 | 40 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Modo Hockey | SEL | 55 | 23 | 41 | 64 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | New York Rangers | NHL | 42 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2010–11 | Connecticut Whale | AHL | 36 | 13 | 16 | 29 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2011–12 | New York Rangers | NHL | 10 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Connecticut Whale | AHL | 37 | 12 | 24 | 36 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | KHL | 44 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 30 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 10 | ||
| 2012–13 | New York Rangers | NHL | 15 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 4 | ||
| 2013–14 | New York Rangers | NHL | 77 | 19 | 40 | 59 | 32 | 25 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 20 | ||
| 2014–15 | New York Rangers | NHL | 78 | 15 | 34 | 49 | 45 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2015–16 | New York Rangers | NHL | 81 | 26 | 35 | 61 | 34 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2016–17 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 15 | 44 | 59 | 26 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 16 | ||
| 2017–18 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 16 | 37 | 53 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | New York Rangers | NHL | 46 | 11 | 26 | 37 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 6 | ||
| 2019–20 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 65 | 15 | 22 | 37 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 42 | 11 | 24 | 35 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2021–22 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 70 | 24 | 55 | 79 | 24 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 2022–23 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 78 | 22 | 45 | 67 | 26 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | ||
| 2023–24 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 69 | 12 | 51 | 63 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2024–25 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 69 | 19 | 35 | 54 | 22 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 904 | 217 | 473 | 690 | 343 | 102 | 19 | 39 | 58 | 60 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Norway | U18 | 10th | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 | |
| 2005 | Norway | U18 D1 | P | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | |
| 2006 | Norway | WJC | 10th | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| 2007 | Norway | WJC D1 | DNQ | 5 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | |
| 2008 | Norway | WC | 8th | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2009 | Norway | OGQ | Q | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2009 | Norway | WC | 11th | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 8 | |
| 2010 | Norway | OLY | 10th | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
| 2010 | Norway | WC | 9th | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2014 | Norway | OLY | 12th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 2016 | Norway | WC | 10th | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 2016 | Norway | OGQ | Q | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Team Europe | WCH |  |
6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |
| 2022 | Norway | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |
| 2024 | Norway | WC | 11th | 5 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2024 | Norway | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 22 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 20 | ||||
| Senior totals | 50 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 30 | ||||
Awards and Honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| NIHF | ||
| Gullpucken | 2010, 2016, 2017, 2022 | |
| SEL | ||
| Guldhjälmen (MVP) | 2010 | |
| AHL | ||
| All-Star Game | 2012 | |
| New York Rangers | ||
| Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award | 2014, 2016, 2017 | |
