To paraphrase Predators general manager Barry Trotz, Jason Zucker is a pain in the backside to play against. That endearing quality is one of the main reasons Trotz made the trade deadline deal to acquire the winger from the Arizona Coyotes.
The deal came at virtually no cost to the Predators, just a sixth-round pick in this June’s draft and to pay what is left on the final year of his contract that pays him $5.3 million this season. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
When asked his reaction to Trotz’s summary of his style of play, Zucker, 32, wears it as a badge of honor.
“That’s what I hope for,” Zucker says. “I don’t really make too many friends out on the ice. I think that’s a good thing to have down the stretch in these kinds of playoff-style games and then into the playoffs. For me, I’m hoping to bring that to this team and show my worth.”
He possesses a blend of speed, skill and sandpaper that make things miserable for opponents to try to handle and already has reached a career high in penalty minutes this season.
Zucker is approaching 700 regular season games played and 200 goals scored. Most of his career was spent with Central Division rival Minnesota Wild, but he has also played with Pittsburgh and Arizona before his trade to Nashville. During part of Zucker’s time in Minnesota, one of his assistant coaches was current Predators head coach Andrew Brunette.
“It’s nice having some familiarity there,” Zucker says. “He’s a great guy. He taught me a lot when I was in Minnesota when he was an assistant, just about the game, how to play the game, how to be a pro. There’s a lot of little things that he taught me. Now having him as head coach, his style of play I think suits my game really well, and I think that’s an exciting thing for me.”
Since the trade, Brunette has played Zucker on a line with center Colton Sissons and fellow deadline-day acquisition Anthony Beauvillier. Longtime Predator Sissons has the responsibility of bringing his wingers up to speed on Brunette’s system, which is faster and more wide-open than that of previous head coach John Hynes.
It didn’t take Zucker (“rhymes with hooker,” he says) too long to feel comfortable in the new system, as he scored his first goal as a Predator in his third game with the team, a road victory over the Winnipeg Jets March 13. The goal was a nifty backhand scored from just outside the crease of Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck.
With 48 playoff games played on his resume, Zucker hopes to add to that total significantly this season. In his quest to do so, he’ll have his opponents reaching for the Preparation H.