Mats Zuccarello’s first night back in the Kings’ lineup came with the kind of offensive jolt Los Angeles has been missing.
After a stop-start beginning to his time with the club, the veteran winger returned in the win over Washington and immediately gave the Kings more puck skill and playmaking presence. His path to that moment wasn’t smooth.
A shoulder injury just before training camp cut into his preparations, limited his camp work, and made him the only veteran to appear in just one exhibition game. He did look sharp in the preseason finale against Anaheim, then opened the season by playing the first three games and picking up his first point in San Jose before landing on injured reserve after the loss to Florida.
That absence kept him out for a couple of weeks, and Zuccarello admitted the early stretch wasn’t easy.
“You want to come in and make an impact,” Zuccarello said. “When you miss camp and miss time, especially in a new group, it’s not even just on the ice, it’s getting to know everyone outside, around the locker room.
When you’re hurt during camp, early in the season, you feel kind of like an outsider, so that sucks, but it’s a part of the game. It’s a long season, I’ve got time to settle in here and it’s a great group of guys, easy to get along with.
So, I just have to find my groove on the ice, feel comfortable. New system, new players, so a little bit of an adjustment, but hopefully that’s not going to take too long.”
He was honest about where his game is right now, too. One night back is not enough to erase the missed time, and he knows the timing still has to come.
“I mean, I feel like I've got a little bit to go to get my timing,” Zuccarello said. “Obviously, I missed part of the camp, so getting your hockey conditioning up and timing and seeing the ice.
The most important thing is that we won. Hopefully can get some confidence in the group and keep going like that, so that one was big.”
Even with room to build, his influence was visible. Zuccarello said the Kings created a little more offensively than they had in recent games, and that matched what the eye test showed: more cohesion, more danger, more of the kind of puck movement that can open up chances. It also came with some looseness at the other end, but Los Angeles scored five goals in 60 minutes - one more than it had managed in the previous four games combined - and Darcy Kuemper was there to clean up some mistakes.
“I think we were able to create a little bit more, to be honest with you, once we settled in,” he said. "Yesterday was good.
First line played really well, created a lot of chances. We had a couple.
Every line, I think, played pretty good. There's some things on the back end we need to clean up, but that's just a part of the game, it goes fast out there.
We're playing good teams, so you're not going to be able to take away everything."
Peter Laviolette was glad to have him back for exactly the reasons the Kings brought him in: offense. Even with QB leaving the game five minutes in, Zuccarello’s return gave the group a needed lift.
“He brings offense, he had a couple of really good chances, there was one in the second period where he walked in, puck was on his stick from about 10, 12 feet out, and the goalie made a nice save. It's nice to have him back.
We're short on offensive pieces and to get guys like that back, I think especially with QB leaving the game five minutes in, having him back in there was a help. We need our guys back in the lineup, healthy, and back in in the lineup.”
It was a solid first step back for Zuccarello, and the next task is straightforward: keep building, keep finding his timing, and give the Kings more of the offense they’ve been waiting for.
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