Mats Zuccarello

Lore & Background

Zuccarello grew up in the suburbs of Løren in Oslo and began playing hockey at age five. After playing for Hasle-Løren and Vålerenga, he accepted a scholarship at the Norwegian College of Elite Sport to play for Frisk Asker. He played three seasons in the GET-ligaen before signing with Modo Hockey in Sweden. In his second season with Modo, he led the team with 23 goals and led the league with 64 points, earning the Guldhjälmen as MVP.

He signed with the New York Rangers as a free agent in 2010 and made his NHL debut on 23 December 2010, becoming the seventh Norwegian to play in the NHL. He scored his first NHL goal in overtime on 1 January 2011. After a brief stint with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL during the 2012–13 lockout, he returned to the Rangers and became a key player. He helped the Rangers reach the 2014 Stanley Cup Final, becoming the first Norwegian to participate in the Final. He was traded to the Dallas Stars on 23 February 2019, debuting the same day and scoring his first goal with the team before suffering an upper-body injury. He later signed a five-year contract with the Minnesota Wild as a free agent on 1 July 2019.

Reader's Guide

Mats Zuccarello's significance lies in his role as a pioneering Norwegian player in the NHL and his consistent offensive production. He is one of only nine Norwegian players to have played in the league and is considered by some the best Norwegian to have done so. His career includes being the first Norwegian to play in the Stanley Cup Final, a milestone for Norwegian hockey. With the Rangers, he led the team in points for three consecutive seasons, a feat achieved by only eight other players in franchise history. He also won the Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award twice, recognizing his hard work and determination. His trade to the Dallas Stars in 2019 was part of the Rangers' rebuild, and he later signed a long-term contract with the Minnesota Wild. In Minnesota, he broke the team record for most assists in a season with 52 assists in 2021–22. His legacy includes overcoming a serious brain contusion and concussion suffered in the 2015 playoffs to return and post a career-high 26 goals the following season, for which he was a finalist for the Bill Masterton Trophy.

Did You Know?

• Zuccarello won the Guldhjälmen as the Swedish Hockey League's most valuable player in 2010.
• He became the first Norwegian to participate in the Stanley Cup Final in 2014.
• He broke the Minnesota Wild team record for most assists in a season with 52 in 2021–22.
• He is of Italian descent from his mother's side.