Las Vegas’ Jason Zucker ready to return to ice after up and down NHL season

ST. PAUL, Minn. — The big money is looming. But Jason Zucker’s not thinking about cashing in. Not when he’s trying to get back on the ice and show everyone he’s worthy of a hefty contract.

The 24-year-old left wing for the Minnesota Wild and Las Vegas’ lone NHL player will be a restricted free agent following a a 2015-16 season in which he earned $950,000. But in what has been a bit of a roller-coaster season, Zucker has had to deal with slumps, injuries and a temporary benching from his former coach. When he’s healthy and on the ice, he has contributed to the Wild with 12 goals and 22 points.

But with his latest injury — a concussion suffered in the second period of the Feb. 21 Stadium Series outdoor game rocked by an open-ice hit from Chicago’s Michal Roszival — just about behind him, Zucker is anxious to return to the ice and help the Wild in the playoff hunt. Minnesota trails Colorado by two points for the Western Conference’s eighth and final postseason spot. The two teams meet Tuesday at the Xcel Energy Center.

“I’m feeling great,” Zucker said Sunday after sitting out the Wild’s 3-1 win over Florida, the fourth game he has spent on the injured list. “I’m hoping to get back out there soon. Exactly when, I’m not sure. There’s no timeline.

“But we’ve got, what, 20 games left? That’s 40 points on the table and I want to be out there helping the team.”

The Wild, which has 19 games remaining, want him back too. Zucker, who is in his fifth NHL season, is one of the team’s fastest skaters and interim coach John Torchetti believes he can play a role in Minnesota’s attempt to make the playoffs.

“He helps us in a lot of ways,” said Torchetti, who coached Zucker in the American Hockey League five years ago. “He has great speed and I want him to use it at both ends of the ice. He knows how to find the net but when he’s playing two-way hockey, that’s when he’s at his best.”

His season started on a high note when he got engaged to Minneapolis television personality Carly Aplin in late July, came to training camp in shape and was placed on the Wild’s second line. He started the season strong, with at least one point in 12 of Minnesota’s first 18 games, including an early seven-game point streak .

But when several of the Wild’s scorers, Zucker included, stopped scoring, the team went into a late-January tailspin, losing eight games in a row. Then-coach Mike Yeo benched Zucker as he was a healthy scratch against St. Louis on Feb. 6. He returned to the lineup the next game only to be placed on the fourth line, seeing just just eight minutes of ice time in a loss to Dallas.

“That’s hockey,” Zucker said. “Things aren’t always going to go the way you want them to.

“In my case, I wasn’t playing well and a decision was made by coach Yeo to help the team win. The only way to make it better is to be prepared and work harder and that’s what I tried to do.”

After Torchetti was hired to replace Yeo on Feb. 13, he immediately told Zucker he was an important cog for the Wild. Torchetti put Zucker back on the second line with Thomas Vanek and Mikel Grandlund as a show of faith and Zucker responded with a goal and an assist.

“I want to use my speed all over the ice to create turnovers which leads to offensive opportunities at the other end,” Zucker said. “When I’m doing that, I’m playing well.”

Then came the latest setback. The puck had already skidded past him in the neutral zone and as Zucker started to backtrack into his own end in support, here came Roszival, who has three inches and 25 pounds on the 5-foot-11-inch Zucker. Roszival leveled Zucker, his head bouncing off the ice like a basketball.

“It was a tough hit for sure,” Zucker said. “I didn’t have the puck, but he had his elbow down and I don’t think it warranted any supplemental discipline, to be honest.”

Zucker has had his share of injuries in his NHL career. He’s hurt his knee, his collarbone and his leg and has missed 55 games during the last two seasons.

“It’s part of the game,” Zucker said of the injuries. “This is a tough league and you’re going to face contact every night.”

He said the engagement has changed his life.

“It makes you realize there’s much more to life than just hockey and I’m blessed to have Carly and (6-year-old daughter) Sophia in my life. It’s helped me become a better person,” he said.

There reportedly was interest in trading for Zucker from other teams. But as the NHL trade deadline passed Monday, Zucker was still in St. Paul. As for that pending contract, Zucker said he hasn’t been offered an extension from the Wild and he’s not thinking about it. Though with a July wedding on the Pacific Ocean in the works, the money will come in handy.

“I’m letting my agent (Rich Evans) handle all that,” Zucker said. “I’m just concentrating on playing.”

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj