There are very few NHLers like Mats Zuccarello. What other hockey player gets the same reaction that the diminutive Norwegian gets in every NHL arena? The “Zuc” that resonates whenever he touches the puck shows how beloved he is. The problem is that he is in the last year of a four-year contract that pays him a bargain $4.5 million each season.
How big a bargain has he been? Since signing that contract, he has been the leading scorer on the Rangers every season. He has led the team in assists in two out of the three seasons and had a career high 26 goals in 2015-16.