Zuccarello jokes: 'Don't be friends with me or else you might be traded'

Mats Zuccarello knows it's nothing personal, but that doesn't make it any easier.

The New York Rangers forward had his tongue firmly in-cheek when he was asked about the team's moves over the last two years.

"Don't be friends with me or else you might be traded," Zuccarello quipped to Larry Brooks of the New York Post.

Zuccarello's two best friends on the club, Carl Hagelin and Derick Brassard, were dealt in successive seasons. Hagelin was traded to the Anaheim Ducks in 2015 and then to the rival Pittsburgh Penguins in January.

In July, the Rangers shipped Brassard to the Ottawa Senators along with a seventh-round pick for Mika Zibanejad and a second-rounder.

Zuccarello is still coping with their departures, regardless of the motivation behind the deals.

"I know it's the business, I understand that," the forward said. "Management is doing what they think is best for the team to make us better. But as a human being and a friend, I don't appreciate it. I've lost my two best friends, and in that way I don't think about hockey. Personally, I'm really sad to lose them."

The Norweigan winger led the Rangers with 61 points last season, trailing only Brassard, his regular linemate, for the team lead in goals. Despite the changes, he's looking forward to playing in the new-look lineup.

"Management was looking to add speed to our core. It might be a little different for me. I don't know who I'm going to be with, but I'm really excited to see what it's going to be all about."