Rangers News: Welcome to New York, Mats Zuccarello-Aasen
by Nick Montemagno on May 26, 2010 3:05 PM EDT
in New York Rangers News
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PrintWe reported the signing almost a month ago, but it was only officially announced by the Rangers today that they have inked Norwegian forward Mats Zuccarello-Aasen. "The Hobbit" played last season in the Swedish Elite League in which his 23 goals and 41 assists in 55 games earned him Most Valuable Player. For a player that is only 5-foot-7, those are remarkable numbers that attracted many teams within the National Hockey League to him like a magnet. Luckily, the Rangers beat out the rest of the competition and locked up Zuccarello-Aasen for two years.
In each of those two years, Mats will collect a $900,000 paycheck, but is capable of being sent down to the minors since his contract is reportedly a two-way deal. At those terms and for what he brings, I think Zuccarello-Aasen will be well worth it next season. He has incredible speed, a great set of hands, and most importantly, he is very strong on both sides of the puck. To average over a point a game in the Swedish Elite League is outstanding and hopefully he can bring that scoring over to the Rangers.
Could he eventually become a match with winger Marian Gaborik? It is certainly possible. I think Mats has the potential to be a fit with Marian based on his game and what I have seen of him. He is a dynamic offensive threat that I truly believe will be successful here in New York.
Read Joe Fortunato's excellent piece on the former MODO Hockey forward from when the signing was originally rumored by clicking here.
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I would love nothing more than MZA to turn into a Marty StLouis but the north american game at the NHL level will be tough on a 5’7’’ kid. So before he can be the chosen one to play with Gaby we need to grounded a bit. Because very few small player become good nhl’ers. Hope he proves me wrong but i won’t hold my breath.
No, I agree. I don’t expect him to play with Gabby, but it is a possibility.
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by Nick Montemagno on May 26, 2010 3:30 PM EDT up reply actions
The Norwegian Hobbit! The Frodo from Modo!
The nickname possibilities are endless.
Nino is next…..
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by Jim Schmiedeberg on May 26, 2010 3:32 PM EDT reply actions
He’s also been nicknamed “The Water Bug” for his speedy play with and without the puck!
Lundqvist-Staal-MDZ-McDonagh-Krieder-Stepan-MZA-Cally-Dubi-Gabby-AA-Grachev-Prust
The core of the 2014 Stanley Cup winners!
by 76 Blueshirt on May 26, 2010 4:18 PM EDT up reply actions
Nino, MZA, Niemi…
Signing young talented european players sounds very, very good. If we get Nino, that’s great, but I’m not putting all my money on him when the draft comes. If anything, watch him be available at the 10 spot and the Rangers pass on him. You can not rule that out.
"Jaromir Jagr.... it's a POWER PLAY GOAL!"
- Sam Rosen
"Marian Gaborik.... it's a POWER PLAY GOAL!"
-Sam Rosen
Not with Gabby
I could see this kid on a line with Avery & AA with Avery’s north/south speed and AA’s puck handling abilities. Could make a nice 3rd line.
5-9?
NYR official website sure has him “generously” listed:
“The 5-9, 170-pounder has appeared in 90 career SEL games with Modo, recording 35 goals and 69 assists for 104 points, along with 10 penalty minutes.”
who is zuke????
thats not even a clever nickname please stop calling him that, its not even the spelling or the pronunciation of the name.
Hmm. Zuke could actually work. Among eachother he’ll forever be the Hobbit or some derivation of that, but in the locker room they’ll most likely call him something like Zuke.
"Mes que un club"
"You're a pro or you're a noob. That's life"
by Scratch and Snif on May 26, 2010 9:48 PM EDT up reply actions
Zuccarello Aasen's response:
If the fans like it, then it’s not a problem for me to be called that, but my friends just call me Zucca. I guess the other one only really started during the Olympics. I don’t mind either way. Fans can call me whatever they want.
Nothing says powerplay like strobe lights and video game music.
by fromthe51hate on Jun 7, 2010 3:13 PM EDT up reply actions
and I would guess Dubi is trade bait, under achiever and makes too much, u know because everyone esle on the team is worth the price :)
Umm…what now?
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by George E. Ays on May 26, 2010 10:19 PM EDT up reply actions
What?
Because of the poor syntax and spelling, I can’t tell if you were being sarcastic. Neither of your assessments regarding Dubinsky are true.
Sorry for "poor syntax and spelling"
That responce was from my phone, it was sarcastic, I think Dubi is a pretty good player, especially for the price. A 1.8m cap hit for a 40p a year player is good. And he should be heading into his prime right now so hopefully we can squeeze another 20 or so points out of him this season. (fingers crossed)
chances are he’s not gonna make the jump to the NHL right away. He’s never played the NA style and theres going to be an adjustment period. Hartford or Rochester is getting themselves a 1st line winger for atleast one season. We’re the rangers, we are going to end up signing a proven guy to fill his spot for a season or 2, and just when they think hes ready…….we’ll throw him in a package for a 2nd round pick
zukes ?
this team is so desperate for scoring they said pavelich and rogers could not take the pounding in the n.h.l. and theo fluery and look what they did pretty good n.h.l. careers ..
lohaus #54
Can anyone say Martin St.Louis??
The thought of Glen Sather is to find the mirror image of the Tampa Bay team of 2004-2005 that won the Stanley Cup. Folks, don’t be surprised if he does deal with Stevie Y and try to get Lecavalier, or try to get Thornton from Sharkland.
Dubinsky is part of his plan for a second line, to create the depth with Drury and Callahan; so he is going nowhere. The third line seems to be shaping up as Anisimov with Prust and Avery (unless Avery gets dealt); and, the fourth line will probably have Shelley (returning) on the left, Weise on the right, and being centered by either a Dominic Moore, a Manny Malhotra, or a Torrey Mitchell.
Looks pretty good from where I sit.
I Am HockeyMan!!
"When I tap my stick like this (thump, thump, thump), put the puck on the tape, and I'll take care of things." Jaromir Jagr, for Bud Light.
sadly I could see Thornton being dealt for but what would we give??? I wouldn’t want him on our team the guy is an absolute choke artist. Yeah he played ok the first two rounds but against the Blackhawks he completely disappeared and started to fan on simple one-timers that he would have scored from. I want no part of Thornton unless it’s a cheap price to give away.
by CrazyRangerFan on May 27, 2010 10:02 PM EDT up reply actions
We act like Prust
is soooo big himself?? I’ve been thinking that it is a good line. It certainly projects as a very good third line.
I Am HockeyMan!!
"When I tap my stick like this (thump, thump, thump), put the puck on the tape, and I'll take care of things." Jaromir Jagr, for Bud Light.
hes not huge but hes tough
& wont sit around letting the little guys get picked on. i think thats a very interesting line combo
I think if MZA can score here the way he did in Sweden (not likely but nice to hope) and AA continues to grow as a player and maybe bulk up, that that could give us what Smurf is always talking about: a line other than Gaborik’s that’s a genuine threat.
I thought Prust showed signs at the end of the season, that maybe he’s not just a tough guy, that he might have some offensive potential.
He backs down from nobody, that’s for sure.
I think if MZA can score here the way he did in Sweden (not likely but nice to hope)
The SEL is one of the closest comparisons to the NHL, in terms of translating point totals. That he dominated that league to the tune of 1.16 ppg is a very good sign he can bring that with him.
Even if he doesn’t get to the 73 NHL points that his total “equals,” if he comes and gives us 50-60 points, for the price we’re paying, he’ll be a godsend.
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by George E. Ays on May 28, 2010 9:33 AM EDT up reply actions
I will agree with that.
It’s a combo that could end up being the future first line.
Hmmmm…..
I Am HockeyMan!!
"When I tap my stick like this (thump, thump, thump), put the puck on the tape, and I'll take care of things." Jaromir Jagr, for Bud Light.
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