Mats Zuccarello criticizes the Blueshirts

A bad start with the Wild

Zuccarello also talked about his time in Minnesota.  He loves the market, calling it a “hockey mecca,” but also acknowledged that he had issues with former coach Bruce Boudreau and also felt pressure after General Manager Paul Fenton was fired.  Fenton had inked Zuccarello to the big contract.

Zuccarello isn’t having a great season in Minnesota.  The 32-year old scored 15 goals and added 22 assists for 37 points in 65 games and is headed for his worst season since he became a regular. It didn’t help that he had only two assists in his first eight games as the Wild got off to a 2-6-0 start.

Some perspective

The Rangers are in a tough position when it comes to the veteran netminder with two younger goalies who are arguably playing better than Lundqvist.  Zuccarello’s sentiments are understandable when it comes to his friend.  Remember Lundqvist’s reaction when Zuccarello was traded last season.

As far as how Zuccarello was treated, the Rangers and Jeff Gorton was able to parlay the veteran into a second and third round draft pick and they were one double overtime goal from getting a first round pick.  With the second rounder the Rangers selected defenseman Matthew Robertson, a prospect with a huge upside and they still have Dallas’ third round pick this summer.

Despite the rebuild, is there any Ranger fan who wouldn’t want Zuccarello playing the right wing with Artemi Panarin and Ryan Strome or playing third line minutes and nurturing the young Rangers as they mature into a Stanley Cup contender?

As hurtful as the trade was to Mats Zuccarello, it reinforces the fact that professional hockey is a business and unfortunately there is no room for loyalty in a salary cap driven world.

Kudos to the Forever Blueshirts site for being the first to pick up on the Zuccarello interview.  Verdens Gang is a daily tabloid newspaper in Norway, better known as VG.  Verdens Gang means “Of the world.”