Filed under: Rangers, NHL Videos
There will always be questions about players like Mats Zuccarello and their ability to play in the NHL. Listed at just 5-foot-7 and 174 pounds, Zuccarello is one of the smallest players in the NHL and will carry the inevitable questions of durability and how he can stand up to the wear and tear of the best hockey league in the world. If the post-lockout NHL has taught us anything, it's that players with this sort of build can absolutely succeed in the league. (Example: 17 players listed at 5-foot-10 or smaller have played at least 20 games in the NHL this season, many of them regular contributors, including Martin St. Louis, Derek Roy, Brian Gionta, Mike Cammalleri, Francois Bouillon and Steve Sullivan). After standing out at the 2010 Winter Olympics with Norway, and performing at an extremely high level in the Swedish Elite League, the 23-year-old inked a contract with the New York Rangers this past summer, and over the past two weeks has managed to get his first taste of NHL action. So far, he's looked pretty good, displaying patience with the puck and the type of hands that allowed him to score 35 goals in 95 games in Sweden.
Oh, and he's also scored the game-winner in back-to-back games.
In his first seven games with the Rangers, he's scored a goal and added two assists, while also recording 14 shots on goal. His lone goal turned out to be a big one coming in overtime of the Rangers 2-1 win against Carolina on Wednesday, while he assisted on the other New York goal that night. To follow it up, Zuccarello scored the game-winner in the shootout on Friday to help lead the Rangers to a 3-2 win in Dallas, beating Kari Lehtonen with a nifty little move.
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