Kings To Sign Mats Zuccarello, Erik Gustafsson
According to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, the Los Angeles Kings are expected to sign Mats Zuccarello. Additionally, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the Kings have also signed defenseman Erik Gustafsson. Zuccarello’s deal will be a one-year, $1MM contract with additional bonuses per Chris Johnston of The Athletic. The details of Gustafsson’s deal have not yet been disclosed.
These moves mark a notable separation between Zuccarello and the Minnesota Wild. The veteran winger served on the team’s top-line through much of the last seven seasons. He served as a dynamic playmaker in each year, marked by three seasons of 45-or-more assists in a Wild jersey. Zuccarello nearly reached that mark again this season, after missing the start of the year with a lower-body injury. He finished the 2025-26 season with 39 assists and 54 points in 59 games, then contributed seven points to eight playoff games while battling through a separate injury in the postseason.
The Wild were the side to call an end to Zuccarello’s time with the club per Michael Russo of The Athletic. Los Angeles will benefit from that decision, adding a veteran winger who could rival top-line minutes next to Artemi Panarin and Quinton Byfield. The nimble passer didn’t get a chance to play alongside Panarin during his tenure with the New York Rangers, which came to an end in 2018-19 – the year before Panarin moved over from the Chicago Blackhawks. The pair could nonetheless offer major upside in Los Angeles, after Zuccarello averaged 71 points per 82 games played with Minnesota.
Los Angeles will also roll the dice on Gustafsson’s availability to the NHL club. The puck-moving defender spent all of this season with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, where he led the blue line with 37 points in 39 games. He made two appearances with the Red Wings but managed no scoring. Gustafsson’s last full stint in the NHL came in Detroit’s 2024-25 campaign. He scored 18 points and a minus-19 in 60 games, a steep decline from the 31 points he scored with the New York Rangers in the year prior. The 34 year old couldn’t find his footing in the Red Wings depth chart but could gain ground in Los Angeles, where his offensive upside could alternate with shutdown defender Brian Dumoulin on the team’s bottom-pair.
Mats Zuccarello Headed To Free Agency
Minnesota has a key veteran forward who wants to test the NHL’s free agent waters.
According to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, Mats Zuccarello is going to market.
Zuccarello will turn 39 when he hits his next NHL training camp. Whichever team signs him, they wouldn’t require much term, but should prepare to have a chunk of cap space to fit him in. Last season, he scored 54 points in 59 games, 39 being assists in Minnesota on a $4.215MM cap hit; his 82-game point pace was at 75. The Oslo native added nine points in eight games played during the Wild’s playoff run.
If acquired, he would ideally be a producer but also a leader to the likes of the younger players on a team’s roster, as Kirill Kaprizov‘s linemate, he is credited as a positive influence for the Russian star forward. Wild GM Bill Guerin was open about wanting him back, but the question came down to whether he would take a short-term contract with lesser guaranteed money or a bonus-focused deal.
One of nine Norwegians to skate on NHL ice, Zuccarello has played nine seasons with the New York Rangers and was the first from Norway to skate in the Stanley Cup Final. He signed his entry-level deal there and a few one-year extensions (four to be exact) before signing a four-year contract, making $4.5MM AAV through 2019. He averaged 56 points during a span of five seasons from 2013-14 through 2017-18, with an NHL career best of 26 goals and 61 points in 2015-16. After being dealt to the Dallas Stars in the final year of that contract, he then signed in Minnesota, where he spent the last seven campaigns on two contracts. Before his current deal that is up soon, he earned $6MM AAV from 2019 to 2025.
Throughout his career, Zuccarello demonstrated the same attributes that have made him a coveted winger, and it displays wherever he goes. Part of what made him and Kaprizov so successful in Minnesota was his passing ability that generates offense. Five seasons in the league, he’s finished with above 40 assists; only three have seen above 20 goals scored in his 16 years as an NHLer. His playmaking effectiveness goes down in Wild history as the fastest player to 200 assists, taking 70 games fewer (330) to get that mark than Mikko Koivu (400). In 963 NHL games, he’s amassed 744 points.
2026-27 Performance Bonus and 35+ Candidates
As NHL front offices gear up for free agency, managing the salary cap demands a delicate balance between risk and reward. While performance bonuses are often linked to elite rookies on entry-level contracts, the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) adds two additional avenues for performance-based incentives: injury comeback deals and contracts for 35-year-old or older veterans. These mechanisms enable teams to secure impactful players with low base salary cap hits, effectively deferring financial obligations until later.
If a team ends the fiscal year with earned bonuses exceeding their remaining cap space, the excess funds are carried over into the next league year as a direct salary cap penalty. This can significantly impact teams near the cap limit or heavily relying on LTIR. PuckPedia has detailed the upcoming free agents who qualify for these specialized incentive structures for the 2026-27 season.
To qualify for a performance-bonus-eligible contract via the injury route, a player must have 400 or more career games and have spent 100 or more days on Injured Reserve during the previous season. This structure allows franchises to take low-risk gambles on proven assets, while the financial incentives toward active roster availability and durability rather than pure scoring production.
Six players fit this criteria heading into free agency, including Derek Forbort (VAN), Alexander Kerfoot (UTA) Patrik Laine (MON), Petr Mrazek (ANA), Matt Murray (SEA), and Tomas Nosek (FLA).
For a team looking for top-six offensive upside, a player like Laine could be highly coveted on a bonus-laden deal, while teams seeking goaltending depth or penalty-killing options could turn to turn to Mrazek, Forbort, or Nosek under this low-risk umbrella.
Contracts signed by players who will be 35 or older by July 1 of the contract year are also eligible for performance bonuses on one-year deals. Front offices frequently use these to protect against sudden age-related decline, tying mid-six-figure bonuses to basic longevity milestones—such as reaching 10, 40, or 60 games played—or team-oriented postseason success.
The upcoming free agent class has an extensive group of veteran forwards eligible for this structure, including Jamie Benn (DAL), Evgenii Dadonov (NJD), Nicolas Deslauriers (CAR), Lars Eller (OTT), Nick Foligno (MIN), Claude Giroux (OTT), Luke Glendening (PHI), Erik Haula (NSH), Adam Henrique (EDM), Marcus Johansson (MIN), Patrick Kane (DET), Anders Lee (NYI), Gustav Nyquist (WPG), Alex Ovechkin (WSH), David Perron (OTT), Corey Perry (TBL), Ryan Reaves (SJ), Reilly Smith (VGS), Jonathan Toews (WPG), Garrett Wilson (PHI), James van Riemsdyk (DET), and Mats Zuccarello (MIN).
The blue line also features a robust market of eligible 35+ defensemen who can weaponize these flexible agreements. This group includes Zach Bogosian (MIN), Brent Burns (COL), John Carlson (ANA), Ian Cole (UTA), Radko Gudas (ANA), Travis Hamonic (DET), Nick Jensen (OTT), Nick Leddy (SJ), Jeff Petry (MIN), Luke Schenn (BUF), and Brendan Smith (CBJ).
Contending teams could use performance bonuses to maximize rosters with high-profile franchise icons like Ovechkin, Benn, Giroux, and Kane eligible for a flexible, low-base-salary structure. However, general managers must be cautious. A player hitting a games-played milestone in late March could trigger a cap overage, restricting cap space at the trade deadline or forcing a painful penalty on the 2027-28 books.
Wild Notes: Zuccarello, Brodin, Eriksson Ek
Although veteran forward Mats Zuccarello is 38 years old and his contract is expiring, he is not looking to conclude his NHL career. Zuccarello indicated to The Athletic’s Joe Smith that he would like to play next season and beyond, saying “I feel like I have some more years left in me. But it’s up to contracts and everything like that. It’s not up to me always. So let’s just take this series, hopefully (the) next one, and see how far we go here before we start thinking about that.”
Zuccarello, 38, could play in his 1,000th NHL game if he ends up returning for next season. He hasn’t shown many signs of slowing down on the ice. In 2025-26, he scored 15 goals and 54 points in 59 regular-season games. He’s managed two goals and nine points in seven playoff contests. Zuccarello has played the best hockey of his career since superstar forward Kirill Kaprizov arrived in Minnesota, regularly flirting with point-per-game levels of production. He made $4.125MM on his last contract and he’s earned every right to stay at that level – if not exceed it – on his next deal.
Other notes from the State of Hockey:
- Injured Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin will not travel with the team to Colorado for their must-win game five against the Avalanche, Michael Russo of The Athletic reported today. Brodin, 32, suffered a lower-body injury in game five of the team’s first round series against the Dallas Stars. He has not played since. His regular role as Minnesota’s second-pair left-shot defenseman has been taken up by 23-year-old Daemon Hunt, and while Hunt has some admirable qualities to his game, he is a clear downgrade from the 915-game NHL veteran.
- The Wild will also be without injured center Joel Eriksson Ek for game five against the Avalanche, meaning the Wild will need to fight to keep their season alive without their best overall center. Eriksson Ek suffered a lower-body injury and has not played since the series against the Stars. The 29-year-old shutdown pivot scored 51 points in the regular season and five points in six games against Dallas. Eriksson Ek’s qualities as a matchup center would be hugely valuable for the Wild as they try to shut down Nathan MacKinnon and the rest of the Avalanche’s firepower. They’ll have to try to extend their season without him as Eriksson Ek remains injured.
Central Notes: Wild, Schmidt, Engle
There is a mixture of good and bad news for the Wild as they head into the third game of their series against Colorado tonight. Michael Russo of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that defenseman Zach Bogosian will indeed return from the lower-body injury that kept him out of Tuesday’s game. Meanwhile, after missing practice Friday due to illness, winger Mats Zuccarello took part in today’s morning skate and will be good to go for this game as well. However, the news isn’t as positive for center Joel Eriksson Ek. He didn’t skate today and has been ruled out for tonight’s contest, meaning that Minnesota will be trying to get back into the series without their top center once again.
Elsewhere in the Central Division:
- A promising Stars prospect is on the move for the second time in less than six months. Earlier this week, WHL Victoria announced that they’ve acquired winger Cameron Schmidt from Seattle in exchange for a pair of draft picks, including the seventh-round pick in the draft from a few days ago. The 19-year-old was a late third-round pick last year, falling due to his smaller stature. But Schmidt is coming off an impressive 2025-26 season, one that saw him reach 100 points in 72 games between Vancouver and Seattle. He’ll now get a shot at one more run at the junior level before likely turning pro for the 2027-28 campaign.
- Jets prospect Edison Engle has changed his college commitment. According to Illegal Curve’s David Minuk and confirmed by Brad Elliott Schlossmann of the Grand Forks Herald, the 19-year-old will now play for Western Michigan next season instead of Ohio State as originally planned. Engle was a sixth-round pick by Winnipeg last summer, going 188th overall. He played for OHL Brantford this season and in his first year at that level, he put up 28 points in 61 games during the regular season before adding five more in 15 playoff contests.
Lineup Notes: Arvidsson, Hagens, Jokiharju, Trenin, Zuccarello
Boston Bruins forward Viktor Arvidsson has been ruled out for Game 5 in Buffalo, reported by Amalie Benjamin, Senior Writer at the NHL. He did not travel with the team.
The 33-year-old left in Game 4 with an upper-body injury, absorbing a hard hit from Mattias Samuelsson. Unfortunately such injuries are common for the feisty winger, who has played in more than 70 regular season games just once since 2017-18. When healthy, the Swede found his game as a Bruin, bouncing back in a big way with 25 goals and 54 points in 69 games.
Arvidsson’s Bruins are on the brink of elimination, but he’s done his part with two tallies in the series. He’ll hope they can extend their season tonight and buy enough time for a potential return, as soon as Game 6 on Friday, if necessary.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Also in Boston, top prospect James Hagens is a healthy scratch for the possible elimination game, indicated by lines shared by Belle Fraser, Multimedia Producer. Alex Steeves slots in on the third line. The 19-year-old appeared in the first three games of the series, but a dip in ice time in the third spelled a scratch last Sunday. With Arvidsson out, there’s naturally the temptation to ice Hagens for a spark, but instead Steeves gets the call for his NHL playoff debut. Steeves, 26, posted 16 points in 43 games this season, his first in Boston. A more defensive minded bottom sixer, he doesn’t quite bring the same excitement as Hagens, but is a bit more trustworthy compared to a rookie who was playing for Boston College just last month. Steeves won’t be the only one making his playoff debut wearing the black and yellow tonight, as Henri Jokiharju replaces Jordan Harris. The 26-year-old defenseman has nearly 500 games of experience prior to his first playoff action tonight, much of which came as a Buffalo Sabre.
- It appears that the Minnesota Wild will welcome back forwards Mats Zuccarello and Yakov Trenin for Game 5 in Dallas, as Joe O’Donnell, Radio Broadcaster, observed the duo in warmups. The 38-year-old Zuccarello hasn’t played since Game 1 with an upper-body-injury, catching an elbow from Dallas’ Tyler Myers. As for Trenin, the 6’4” grinder usually known for dishing out hits absorbed a massive open ice check from 5’8” Colin Blackwell, the two former Nashville teammates, and left with an upper-body injury. Trenin had to miss the last two contests, but will seek vengeance in a pivotal contest between the teams split two wins apiece.
Central Notes: Stars, Zuccarello, Honka
Dallas Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan updated the media on the status of multiple injured Stars players today. Star defenseman Miro Heiskanen did not skate today but that was only since it was a scheduled maintenance day – he will play in game five against the Minnesota Wild tomorrow. Nils Lundkvist, who suffered a deep facial laceration, won’t play tomorrow, but Gulutzan expressed optimism that he’d be back before the end of the series. Roope Hintz, who has been sidelined since March 8 with a lower-body injury, is progressing and skating on his own but doesn’t have an imminent expected return date.
With Lundkvist set to miss game five, the Stars will have to replace his spot in their lineup. He was partnered with Thomas Harley on Dallas’ second pairing. Gulutzan said the decision hasn’t been made as to who will take the open spot on the defense tonight. The Stars have three defensemen on their roster to choose from: right-shot blueliners Ilya Lyubushkin and Alexander Petrovic, and left-shot defenseman Kyle Capobianco. The front runner for the role is almost certainly Lyubushkin, a veteran of over 500 NHL games who got into 14 playoff games for Dallas last season.
Other notes from around the NHL:
- Injured Wild forward Mats Zuccarello practiced with the team today, something that head coach John Hynes told the media was a “good sign” for his availability for game five, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic. Zuccarello has played in just one game of the Wild’s first-round series and is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Also day-to-day is veteran Yakov Trenin, who was forced out of game two with an upper-body injury. Zuccarello, 38, is one of the Wild’s top offensive options while Trenin is a bottom-six staple.
- 2014 Dallas Stars first-round pick Julius Honka signed a contract with HC Ajoie of the Swiss National League, according to a team announcement. The signing will allow Honka to join his younger brother, former Carolina Hurricanes prospect Anttoni Honka, who was also the team’s top scorer. The older Honka brother played last season with the NL’s Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, and has been in the Swiss league since 2023. Honka last played in North America in 2020-21, for the AHL’s Texas Stars, and last appeared in the NHL with Dallas in 2018-19.
Central Notes: Lundkvist, Manson, Zuccarello
In the second period of tonight’s game between the Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild, Stars defenseman Nils Lundkvist left the contest after taking a skate to the face. Lundkvist was fighting for a puck with Michael McCarron toward Dallas’ net, and McCarron’s skate hit Lundkvist in the left cheek as both were falling to the ice.
Initially, there was some hope that Lundkvist could get a few stitches and get back to the game. The Stars announced that Lundkvist was “questionable” to return, although he ultimately never did before Dallas lost in overtime. In an update after the game from Lia Assimakopoulos of The Dallas Morning News, head coach Glen Gulutzan described the injury as far more serious, saying Lundkvist suffered a deep facial laceration and he didn’t know whether he had already gone to the hospital.
Fortunately, given that both teams need a travel day, Game 5 isn’t until next Tuesday. If Lundkvist is unable to go by then, it’s expected that 32-year-old veteran Ilya Lyubushkin will draw into the lineup.
Additional notes from the Central Division:
- In other news regarding injured defensemen, the Colorado Avalanche will be without Josh Manson tomorrow night. According to Jesse Montero of Guerilla Sports, Manson was still “sore” from his upper-body injury at practice today. This means that instead of Manson, depth defender Nick Blankenburg will help the Avalanche in their attempt to close out their Round One series against the Los Angeles Kings in Game 4. Blankenburg scored two goals and three points in 12 games for Colorado after being acquired from the Nashville Predators at the trade deadline.
- Moving to the other side of the now-even series between the Stars and Wild, the latter team was without Mats Zuccarello for the third consecutive game. Michael Russo of The Athletic indicated that Zuccarello had been elevated to a game-time decision for tonight’s contest, but was still battling lingering effects from being elbowed in the head by Dallas defenseman Tyler Myers.
Central Notes: Manson, Zuccarello, Trenin
Despite taking a commanding 3-0 series lead against the Los Angeles Kings, the Colorado Avalanche are already dealing with injury concerns. According to Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette, top-four defenseman Josh Manson is being evaluated for an upper-body injury and could miss Game 4.
Manson suffered the injury scare early in Game 3, being on the receiving end of a hit from Kings defenseman Joel Edmundson. Manson attempted to return to the game, though he was largely sheltered due to his discomfort. He finished the contest with one assist in 4:57 of ice time with one hit and one giveaway.
Although there is never a good time for injuries, the Avalanche have put themselves in a good position to absorb one. Yes, the team is potentially losing a formidable top-four defenseman. Still, with only one more win needed to advance to Round Two, they can likely sweep Los Angeles, giving Manson a larger gap to rest in between games. Colorado acquired Nick Blankenburg at the deadline for exactly this reason, who will likely fill in for Manson if he should be ruled out for Game 4. Blankenburg scored eight goals and 24 points in 61 games split between the Nashville Predators and the Avalanche this season.
Additional notes from the Central Division:
- According to Mike Morreale of the NHL, Minnesota Wild veteran winger Mats Zuccarello has been upgraded to a game-time decision for Game 4. Although he’s not the main driver of offense in Minnesota, the Wild didn’t win either of the two games that Zuccarello missed due to his upper-body injury. If he does return, he’ll look to pick up where he left off in Game 1, when he registered three assists in 16:41 of ice time.
- Unfortunately, it’s not all good news on the injury front for the Wild. In the same report from Morreale, the senior draft writer indicated that Yakov Trenin has been ruled out for Game 4. Throughout the entire regular season, Trenin played all 82 games and has not missed back-to-back games since last year. Still, he was fairly quiet during the first two games of the series, going scoreless in 16:38 of ice time, but he did deliver 16 hits.
Injury Notes: Oilers, Lightning, Wild
Edmonton Oilers center Jason Dickinson is questionable for game two tonight against the Anaheim Ducks as the result of an undisclosed injury, reports Jason Gregor of Sports 1440. Per Gregor, veteran Curtis Lazar will enter head coach Kris Knoblauch’s lineup if Dickinson can’t dress. Dickinson has had some trouble staying healthy in recent weeks, as he missed the final three games of Edmonton’s regular season schedule with a lower-body injury. That didn’t stop him from making a major impact in game one, as he scored two goals in Edmonton’s 4-3 victory over the Ducks.
The 30-year-old veteran was acquired by the Oilers at the trade deadline from the Chicago Blackhawks, and is a well-respected bottom-six center thanks to his defensive ability. Lazar, 31, is also a bottom-six defensive center, though he is not held in quite as high a regard as the player he may replace in the lineup. Lazar got into 45 games for Edmonton this season, averaging 8:55 time on ice per game, including 0:33 per game on the penalty kill. Dickinson has been Edmonton’s top penalty-killing forward since he was acquired, averaging a team-high 1:51 time on ice per game while short handed.
Other injury updates from around the NHL:
- Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper updated the media on the status of the team’s injured players before the team’s flight to Montreal today, telling team reporter Gabby Shirley that forward Pontus Holmberg is still out on a week-to-week basis, and “definitely” won’t be able to return within the timeframe of the team’s series against the Canadiens. He also said defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous is “progressing” in his recovery from the injury he suffered from game one, and will skate while the team is on the road. He also added that injured captain Victor Hedman is traveling with the team, but there is no firm timeline on his return.
- Minnesota Wild forwards Mats Zuccarello and Yakov Trenin will be game-time decisions in advance of game three tonight against the Dallas Stars, reports Michael Russo of The Athletic. According to Russo, if one of the pair is unable to play, Nico Sturm will draw into the lineup in their place. Zuccarello played game one against the Stars but missed game two with an upper-body injury. He’s one of the Wild’s top offensive players when healthy, having scored 54 points in 59 games this season. Trenin is managing an upper-body injury, and could be at risk of missing a game this season for the first time.