From Larry Brooks of the New York Post after the Rangers’ crushing 5-0 loss to the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday:
It’s time for sliding Rangers to trade frustrated fan favorite
GLENDALE, AZ.— It is time for Jeff Gorton to do the right thing. Time for the general manager to do what’s best for his team and for Mats Zuccarello by moving the impending free agent as soon as he gets a legit trade offer and thus end the waiting game that is eating away at No. 36 and sure isn’t helping the Blueshirts.
“I’m a human being, so obviously it has been on my mind and I’ve allowed it to get into my head, probably too much,” Zuccarello told The Post following Sunday afternoon’s 5-0 rout by the Coyotes in which the Rangers put up no fight and Henrik Lundqvist was pulled for the second straight game. “When it affects my game the way it has been, that’s on me; I shouldn’t have let it get to that point.
“I mean, I’m a professional and have a responsibility to the team and my teammates. It’s been hard. I let it get to me. I need to let go of it and get back to being the Zukey everyone knows. I thought actually that it was a little bit better that way in this game for me, but obviously not close to being enough.”
Suddenly, the Rangers don’t have close to enough to even compete. They have lost three straight while being outscored by an ungodly 18-3, the most brutal hat trick of consecutive losses since the three in Alain Vigneault’s third, fourth and fifth games behind the New York bench in San Jose, Anaheim and St. Louis in which the aggregate score against was 20-5. Their fight seems to have vanished into the winter night with Santa Claus’ sled.
It has been obvious for nearly a year the Rangers would move Zuccarello by the Feb. 25 trade deadline. The club would have moved the winger last year, or at the draft, had they received a generous enough offer. Now, though, it’s a fait accompli. He may as well be a chalk outline of himself.
“People can say that I’m making enough money [$4.5 million] that I shouldn’t let any of this affect me, but I’m sorry, I have been here for nine years, and I am human,” said Zuccarello, who has 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) overall. “I know I have a job to do, and I am going to do my best for as long as I’m here. I don’t want to let anyone down.”
Zuccarello has been an immensely popular player among not only the fan base, but his peers in the room. He has been one of the leaders, one of the guys able to lighten the mood in the room who also leads by example on the ice. But he hasn’t been that person or player this year. It’s not a leap to suggest that his teammates have noticed.
“The last few weeks I have been too emotional about it,” Zuccarello said. “It’s a tough situation, but it’s also no excuse for me. It is what it is. I know that.”
The Rangers are not going to be able to stoke a bidding war for Zuccarello by holding onto him until the final pre-deadline hours. If he rediscovers the joy in his game after he is dealt — while also playing for a contract, remember — his new team will likely have a bargain. And there are numerous contenders throughout the league seeking cost-effective second- and third-line help who should be interested in him.
It is beginning to fall apart for the Rangers. If David Quinn has much coaching to do — and he does — then the least Gorton can do is provide him with players who aren’t short-timers. The GM should do his best here to jump the market with Zuccarello and make a move as soon as it is feasible. The Jan. 20-28 bye week/All-Star break seems like an opportune time for it.
It may be only halfway through 2018-19, but Gorton’s responsibility is to tackle 2019-20 and beyond, and as quickly as possible. And a second mid-winter cleaning should begin with Zuccarello. It is the right thing for the team. It is the right thing for this very popular player. The sooner the better.
