Going into the 2025-26 season, Kirill Kaprizov’s record-breaking contract made headlines, and rising star Zeev Buium. Still, the Minnesota Wild need reliable veteran players, even if they don’t score every night. Mats Zuccarello is in his 16th NHL season and his 7th with the Wild, and has been one of those dependable players.
Zuccarello’s best season was 24 goals and 55 assists in 79 games, but he averages 0.76 points per game (PPG) over his career and has hovered around 60 points in the last several seasons. His 84.90 mph shot is in the 63rd percentile. Morgan Geekie’s 103.03 mph shot is the hardest in the NHL. Zuccarello’s 44.3% average zone time is just above the NHL average of 42.4%.
This season, Zuccarello has maintained his PPG average, with 2 goals and 10 assists over 15 games for the Wild. If Zuccarello is in uniform, he remains a net positive for the Wild. However, staying healthy has been an issue.
During his 2024-25 season exit interview, reporters asked about his health. Zuccarello responded, “I’m 37, I’ve always got to take care of something.” Still, he said he felt good overall. However, Zuccarello suffered from a lower-body injury in September and missed the first 15 games of the season. The Wild went 5-7-3 through his absence, and have been playing better since his return, now at 17-9-5.
However, in Monday’s game against the Seattle Kraken, Zuccarello was skating the puck up the boards. He slowed down and cut in to get around Vince Dunn, who was already going in for a hit, and laid him out.
Even if Dunn was going to hit him in the side initially, he hit Zuccarello square in the chest. Zuccarello then spun out and hit the ice, making it look and probably feel infinitely worse. Dunn initially headed to the box for a 5-minute major, but the officials decided the hit was legal. Still, Zuccarello’s teammates didn’t think it was legal and got a few right hooks in on Dunn after the play.
He ended up leaving the game. Jake Middleton and Matt Boldy also left the game early due to various injuries. Boldy was hit by a puck with one minute left and played well against the Dallas Stars.
Zuccarello skated off the ice unassisted, suggesting the injury might be short-term. However, the Wild announced on Thursday that they had placed Zuccarello and Middleton on injured reserve. The Wild pulled up Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Matt Kiersted from the AHL to fill in the gaps.
Zuccarello’s injury came at the worst possible time. He was having a strong, steady season, padding Minnesota’s points and getting chances. On December 6, he netted 2 points for the Wild against the Vancouver Canucks. Zuccarello picked up a loose puck along the boards and entered the zone, then took a look and slid the puck across to Matt Boldy for a one-timer.
During a power play later in the game, Zuccarello caught a pass from Kaprizov. Although he didn’t see a strong outlet, he made a move to protect the puck and sniped the top shelf past Nikita Tolopilo.
Minnesota didn’t take home the W, but the Canucks would’ve shut the Wild out without Zuccarello’s skillful play.
It’s tough to see Zuccarello go back on IR after missing a significant part of the season. With Marco Rossi, Marcus Foligno, and Vinnie Hinostroza already on IR, it feels like the snowball effect has begun. The fewer players on the roster, the more the rest of the team must step in and play more minutes. Therefore, they are more susceptible to injury and under more pressure to get back in the game quickly.
In a discussion about a player’s value on the team, contracts are a key part of the conversation. Zuccarello is currently in the second year of a 2-year, $4.125 million AAV contract. Alex Laferriere and Adam Gaudette are within $0.1 million of each other on similar contracts and have 13 points in 30 games and 10 points in 28 games, respectively. When Zuccarello is on the ice, he’s definitely earning his salary. Smaller contracts like this have given the Wild the cap space to re-sign Kaprizov and Filip Gustavsson, without sacrificing depth.
Zuccarello might not have a Hart trophy collection, but he is a vital part of this team. He’s good for at least one point every couple of games and brings dependable depth to the Wild. Hopefully, he has a quick recovery and can continue strengthening Minnesota for the remainder of the season.