Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Heisann Mats!

RANGERS AGREE TO TERMS WITH FREE AGENT FORWARD MATS ZUCCARELLO AASEN

New York, May 26, 2010 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with free agent forward Mats Zuccarello Aasen.

“Mats is a highly skilled player with excellent hockey sense,” stated Sather. “He has produced at every level he has played, and we think his offensive abilities, both as a scorer and play maker, make him a valuable asset to the organization.”

Zuccarello Aasen, 22, skated in 55 games with MODO of the Swedish Elite League (SEL) this past season, registering 23 goals and 41 assists for 64 points, along with 62 penalty minutes. He [caotured] the Guldhjälmen award as the league’s Most Valuable Player.

The 5-9, 170-pound ... Norway native has represented his country in several tournaments, including the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, finishing third on the team in scoring with three points (one goal and two assists) in four contests. Recently, Zuccarello Aasen participated in the 2010 World Championship in Germany, marking his third World Championship appearance with Norway. He finished the tournament tied for the team lead with three goals and second on Norway with four points in six contests. He also led Norway with 17 shots on goal and two game winning goals in the tournament.
It is definitely nice to see the deal done as it is low risk/high reward, but - as I said a while back - let's just wait and see how quickly makes the transition this fall before we get all giddy.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

He will be traded right before he transitions to the NHL and will become a superstar on another team.

SkammelsrudGPV said...

His nickname from Norway is the Hobbit, but if he's a success in New York I think Zuccarello Awesome might be better.

Pete said...

AS a Rangers fan, I could really use SOMETHING to be excited about, so, for now, this is it.

That's not saying much, is it?

Andrea said...

Sorry, I cannot get excited about a player nicknamed The Hobbit. If he's got twenty five NHL goals by March, remind me and I'll eat my hat. While I'm a HUGE fan of finesse, I'd like to see some consistent brawn on this team. Why is Ryan Callahan, no giant himself, leading this team in hits? I'm looking at you Marc Staal. You too, Girardi.