Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Returning to action Thursday
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Zuccarello (personal) will be back in the lineup Thursday versus Seattle, according to Jessi Pierce of NHL.com.
Zuccarello missed the last three games of the regular season, but he'll slot into a second-line role for the final game of the campaign. He has 11 goals and 62 points in 68 appearances this season. Zucc is expected to return to the top line with Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Yet to rejoin team
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Zuccarello (personal) was not on the ice for Monday's game-day skate, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports, indicating he'll be unavailable versus the Kings.
Zuccarello remains mired in a 20-game goal, but he has produced 16 helpers over that stretch, including seven with the man advantage. At this point, Zuccarello should probably be considered questionable to play in the Wild's season finale at home versus the Kraken on Thursday.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Still out Saturday
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Zuccarello (personal) won't play Saturday versus the Sharks, Curtis Pashelka of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
It's unclear if Zuccarello will be back with the Wild in time for Monday's game versus the Kings. Minnesota will dress seven defensemen in Saturday's contest.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Unavailable Friday
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Zuccarello (personal) will miss Friday's game against Vegas, per Michael Russo of The Athletic.
Zuccarello's status for Saturday's tilt versus San Jose hasn't been determined yet. The 36-year-old has 11 goals and 62 points in 68 outings in 2023-24. Adam Beckman is expected to draw into the lineup versus the Golden Knights due to Zuccarello's absence.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Attending to personal matter
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Zuccarello is not with the team in Vegas due to personal reasons and could miss Friday's matchup, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
Coach John Hynes didn't completely rule out Zuccarello against the Golden Knights, so fantasy players should consider him a game-time call for now. If the veteran forward does miss out, Matt Boldy figures to step into a first-line role, while Ryan Hartman could see an uptick in power-play minutes.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Adds two power-play helpers
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Zuccarello grabbed a pair of assists in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to Colorado.
Zuccarello earned helpers on both of Minnesota's power-play goals in the opening period. While the 36-year-old winger hasn't scored a goal since Feb. 23, he now has six assists in his last four games. Overall, Zuccarello's up to 11 goals and 51 assists, four shy of a career-high, through 68 games in a top-line role this season.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Expected to play Tuesday
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Zuccarello (undisclosed) is on the ice for warmups, indicating he'll play Tuesday versus the Avalanche, Joe Smith of The Athletic reports.
Zuccarello was listed as a game-time decision, but it looks like the 36-year-old will give it a go. The Wild are expected to dress seven defensemen Tuesday, but that likely won't have much impact on Zuccarello in a top-six role.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Game-time decision
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Zuccarello (undisclosed) will be a game-time decision Tuesday against Colorado, Sarah McLellan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Zuccarello left Tuesday's morning skate early to receive treatment. Coach John Hynes believes the 36-year-old forward will be available to play, but the lineup won't be confirmed until closer to puck drop. Zuccarello has 11 goals and 60 points in 67 contests this season.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Riding three-game point streak
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Zuccarello contributed an assist in a 4-0 win over Chicago on Sunday.
Zuccarello has chipped in four helpers during a three-game point spree. He only had two assists in nine contests before his recent success. Still, Zuccarello hasn't scored a goal since Feb. 23 against Edmonton. During his 19-game goal drought, he has supplied 14 assists and a whopping 51 shots on net.
Zuccarello assisted on three goals during Thursday's 5-2 win over the Coyotes.
He may not be scoring goals at the same clip he has in past seasons, but he is still making plays happen. Zuccarello's three-assist night brings him to 42 assists in 53 games this season. He had failed to register a point in the last three games, and that was his longest point drought since October. The totals might not be gaudy most of the time, but there is some consistency to his production.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Set to play Thursday
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Zuccarello (personal) is expected to play Thursday versus the Coyotes, per the NHL media site.
Zuccarello missed Sunday's game versus the Sharks, but it looks like that will be the extent of his absence. Look for the winger to resume his top-six role with time on the first power-play unit against Arizona.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Sitting out Sunday
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Zuccarello (personal) will not suit up Sunday against the Sharks, Jessi Pierce of NHL.com reports.
Zuccarello was a late scratch after head coach John Hynes hinted at a player being a game-time call. The veteran winger has 50 points in 52 games this season. He's racked up 10 of those over his last seven games, though he's been scoreless over his last three appearances. Minnesota's next game is Thursday in Arizona.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Distributes four helpers
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Zuccarello notched four assists, three shots on goal, four PIM, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Kraken.
Two of Zuccarello's assists came on the power play. The 36-year-old winger has 10 points over his last four games, with seven of those points coming with the man advantage. The playmaker has 11 goals, 39 assists, 121 shots on net, 39 blocked shots and a minus-2 rating through 49 outings overall. He is defying the NHL's aging curve again and could end up with one of his best seasons if he stays healthy.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Fills empty cage
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Zuccarello scored an empty-net goal on two shots in Friday's 4-2 win over the Oilers.
Zuccarello has six points over his last three contests, with his tally Friday being his first even-strength point in that span. The Wild shuffled Zuccarello off the top line after the All-Star break, which has taken some of the pop out of his offense. He's now at 11 goals, 46 points, 118 shots on net and a minus-4 rating through 48 outings. The 36-year-old winger should still be a safe fantasy play with his significant power-play role.
Zuccarello collected a goal and three helpers in Monday's 10-7 win over the Canucks.
With the Wild down 5-2 in the second period, Zuccarello scored his only goal of the game by deflecting a shot off his skate into the back of the net on a pass from Kirill Kaprizov. Not only did his goal cut the lead to two, but it started an onslaught of Minnesota goals as they scored six unanswered on Vancouver. All of Zuccarello's points, including three straight power-play assists, were during that barrage. He also added two PIM, one shot on net, a hit and a minus-2 rating in 18:14 of ice time.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Nets power-play marker
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Zuccarello scored a power-play goal on three shots in Monday's 5-3 win over the Golden Knights.
This was Zuccarello's first goal in seven games and his first point in three outings. He converted on a pass from Kirill Kaprizov midway through the first period. Zuccarello's recent dip in offense has seen him land on the second line at even strength, but he remains on the top power-play unit. The 36-year-old winger has racked up nine goals, 40 points (21 on the power play), 106 shots on net and a minus-1 rating as a strong top-six playmaker for the Wild through 43 appearances.
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Wild's Mats Zuccarello: Two points in loss
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Zuccarello registered two assists, two shots on goal and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 3-2 loss to the Ducks.
Zuccarello will likely get credit for two points either way -- his assist on the Wild's second goal may eventually be changed to his tally given that it looked like his shot never touched Jon Merrill. With nine points over his last seven outings, Zuccarello is in fine playmaking form on the top line. For the season, he's produced 39 points, 101 shots on net and a minus-2 rating through 40 appearances.
