Zuccarello wants the Rangers to offer him a contract “showing they believe” in him

Mats Zuccarello (Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Norwegian Sports website Nettavisen is reporting that Mats Zuccarello wants a real commitment from the Rangers that shows they “believe in him”. His teammates want him to stay and right now with 9 points in his last 7 games, he’s one of their hottest players.

As per Google Translate:

[su_quote cite=”NETTAVISEN” url=”https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nettavisen.no%2Fsport%2Fvintersport%2Fher-er-rangers-stjernens-zucca-bnn%2F8542338.html”]”If I feel that they offer me a contract showing that they believe in me, and we would agree, said Zuccarello Nettavisen… Yeah, we’ll see then. There are a lot questions about my contract. We’ll see what happens in the end, and we hope it works out.”[/su_quote]

There really is no mystery as to Mats Zuccarello’s desire to stay in NY and the Rangers desire to keep him. He is loved by his teammates and they want him to stay as well. Anders Larsen Bakkerud quoted Marc Staal saying, “Yes, of course we want it! We want him to stay here. He is a fantastic player, and hopefully they manage to come to a solution with the club so he can continue with us.”

Mats Zuccarello(AP)

However, we’re just weeks away from the NHL trade deadline and literally not a beep about the two sides negotiating. If they are, it is being kept extremely quiet. I reached out to an industry leader with access to these situations and was told “nothing new” on Zuccarello’s contract.

This is concerning and being that Mats is a UFA at the end of the year, most teams wouldn’t give up much in way of a trade. At best, the Blueshirts could swap out rentals as we suggested a Vermette for Zuccarello swap weeks ago.

Add in the information from ESPN that Zuccarello is unlikely to be moved by the deadline and you wonder what Sather is thinking? Is the gap between the two sides close or are we dealing with a large chasm just like the Ryan Callahan situation?

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I do find Mats words intriguing though. “If they offer me a contract showing that they believe in me, I would agree.” What does that mean? More money, more term, both? While we all wait for Larry Brooks to break more news, panic will continue to rise. At this time, no one really seems to have that information as we near the trade deadline.

For now, Mats Zuccarello is having his best offensive output of the season. As Marty St. Louis and Derek Stepan continue to struggle, those points are desperately needed. And with each and every point, Mats Zuccarello’s contract demands probably rise.

Decisions, decisions.

Check out SNY RANGERS for more on this story.

 

Anthony Scultore has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL since 2014. His work also appears at... More about Anthony Scultore

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