Stars' Zuccarello expected to miss four weeks

Newly acquired Dallas Stars winger Mats Zuccarello is expected to miss four weeks with an upper-body injury sustained in his debut Sunday afternoon, the team announced after the game. Acquired from the New York Rangers on Saturday evening, Zuccarello hopped a 5 a.m. flight from New York to Chicago and scored a goal and an assist in the 4-3 win over the Blackhawks. However, he took a slapshot off his right forearm/wrist area late in the second period and did not return. He told reporters afterward he believed he broke his arm.

The team announced afterward that Zuccarello is returning to Dallas for evaluation, but the "early assessment" pegged his absence at four weeks, which would keep him out of 13 of the team's final 20 games. Stars captain Jamie Benn also left Sunday's game early with an upper-body injury but is day-to-day, per head coach Jim Montgomery, who said Benn had aggravated an injury he sustained Saturday night.

With 67 points, the Stars currently hold the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Zuccarello, 31, has 12 goals and 27 assists in 47 games this season, including 24 points (eight goals, 16 assists) in his last 17 contests.

Dallas gave up conditional second- and third-round picks to acquire him, both of which can reportedly become first-rounders. The second-rounder will turn into a first if the Stars win two playoff series this postseason, while the third-rounder will become a first if Zuccarello re-signs with Dallas. The Norwegian is in the final year of a four-year, $18 million contract and can hit free agency this summer. The Rangers reportedly retained a quarter of his $4.5 million cap hit and salary for this season.

--Field Level Media