New York Rangers' Mats Zuccarello Dominating Despite Few Goals
Mats Zuccarello hasn’t scored as much as last season, but his impact is felt regardless. Let’s look at how Zuccarello has been contributing to the New York Rangers during some trying scoring times.
Mats Zuccarello has always been a pass-first player for the New York Rangers. With this kind of mentality, goal scoring droughts are to be expected, and Zuccarello is currently going through one at the moment. With that said, Zuccarello is still a constant positive impact on the ice due to the many other facets of the game he excels at.
Some players tend to become “invisible” when they are going through a drought. We have seen this lack of contribution from former Rangers like Marian Gaborik, who struggled to make an impact anywhere on the ice when he wasn’t scoring goals.
Zuccarello does not fit into that category. Despite his lack of goals in recent games, he still managed to record over a point per game in the seventeen games prior to the All Star break. 17 of the 18 points he recorded in that span were assists.
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It cannot go unnoticed that Zuccarello, while not physically scoring goals himself, is boosting line chemistry and raising overall team performance by consistently setting up goals.
Whether he is the goal scorer or he is helping someone else become one matters not; when he is on the ice, goals are scored, and he is a big reason why.
Zuccarello also impacts the game in other ways. Despite his diminutive size, he is always playing physically and separating bodies from pucks with his deft defensive aptitude. What typically results from his great puck skills both offensively and defensively is a glorious scoring chance that he sets up. His hockey IQ and passing ability is easily tops on the team.
As it stands, Zuccarello is second on the team in scoring, and is currently on pace for 62 points (14 goals, 48 assists). If that continues, it will not only be his highest career point total, but it will align with his typical NHL scoring trends; other than last year’s 26 goals, Zuccarello has never been in the realm of 20+ goals scored in his career.
All that can be expected from him this season is his career norm.
Even when he isn’t scoring goals, Mats Zuccarello is one of the biggest impact players the Rangers have. His contributions are felt in every area of the game, and the Rangers are a better team with him on the ice.
At a cap hit of just $4.5 million for player of his aptitude, a goal drought is a small price to pay for everything else he brings.
