
Mats Zuccarello returned from injury to score the first goal in Game 5, leading the Minnesota Wild to a 4-2 victory over the Dallas Stars. The Wild now lead their playoff series 3-2.
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To know Mats Zuccarello is to love Mats Zuccarello. Certainly New York Rangers fans are well aware of that, even if the popular forward departed Broadway seven years ago and is now inspiring his current team, the Minnesota Wild, and its fan base.
Zuccarello was it again Tuesday night in Game 5 of Minnesotaâs opening-round playoff series against the Dallas Stars. Back in the lineup after missing three games with an upper-body injury, the 38-year-old scored the first goal in Minnesotaâs 4-2 road victory, and the Wild now lead the best-of-7 series 3-2.
Asked about the âZuccarello effectâ after the win, veteran Wild forward Marcus Foligno broke out into a wide grin.
âA little swagger after tonightâs game. We needed him, thatâs what he was saying,â Foligno joked with reporters, before turning more serious.
âIt was awesome. To have him come back and score the first goal, i think that got our hearts pumping a little more. That was kind of a beautiful moment for our team to have. A guy like that, I mean âZuccyâ has done so much for our team.â
You donât have to tell the Rangers or the Blueshirt Faithful that. They know all about what Zuccarello brings on the ice and off, as a terrific player and even better teammate. There were nine seasons of âZuuuc!â chants at Madison Square Garden, including three times he was voted winner of the prestigious .
Mats Zuccarello scored the first goal, contributing significantly to the Minnesota Wild's 4-2 victory over the Dallas Stars.
Mats Zuccarello missed three games due to an upper-body injury before returning for Game 5.
The Minnesota Wild now lead the best-of-7 playoff series against the Dallas Stars 3-2.
Veteran Wild forward Marcus Foligno commented on the 'Zuccarello effect' after the team's victory.

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Now in his seventh season with the Wild, Ziccarello continues to chase his first Stanley Cup championship, having reached the Cup Final only one time, in 2014 with the Rangers. He opened this postseason with a three-assists performance, helping the Wild rout the Stars 6-1 in Game 1. But Zuccarello sustained what appeared to be a head injury in that one, though the Wild never clarified the exact nature of the issue. He finished the game, but missed the next three â two losses and an overtime win in Game 4.
âIt always sucks to be out and not in the lineup, especially this time of the year, so it was nice to get back,â Zuccarello shared postgame.
He danced around what his injury was. But it sure sounded like it was a concussion, or head related.
âI felt it kind of two days there, but you keep telling yourself youâre fine because you donât really want to realize that you have a problem,â he explained. âThen you donât want to hinder the team, if youâre not 100 percent then you shouldnât play. Especially the way I felt. I didnât feel good and I was pretty roughed up for a couple days there, and then slowly got better and better.â
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This, of course, conjures memories of the 2015 playoffs, when Zuccarello sustained a skull fracture in the first round against the Penguins, had trouble speaking for a while, and missed the rest of the postseason, including the seven-game Eastern Conference final loss against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
On Tuesday, with Zuccarello back in the lineup, the Wild played their most complete game of the series. Now, they go back home knowing one more victory sends them to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2015.
Whatâs the key ahead of Game 6? Zuccarello had a cheeky answer.
âI think itâs just important to stay calm, you know, donât overthink it, donât read whatever you guys (media) say about we havenât gotten out of the first round in a couple years.â
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