College career Playing for the
University of Denver in 2010–11, he was the
Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Rookie of the Year, and was also named to the WCHA All-Rookie Team and 2nd All-Star Team. In his two seasons playing for Denver, he had 45 goals and 91 points in 78 games. He turned pro following the 2011–12 season. Zucker signed his entry-level contract with the Wild on March 27, 2012. He made his NHL debut in a victory against the
Florida Panthers on March 29, 2012. The
2012–13 NHL season was delayed by the
2012–13 NHL lockout and Zucker was assigned to Minnesota's
American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the
Houston Aeros, where he registered 50 points in 55 games. He played in the 2013 AHL All-Star Classic, representing the Aeros. Zucker was named to the AHL All-Rookie Team after leading the Aeros in scoring with 24 goals. Zucker was recalled by Minnesota He scored his first NHL goal against
Petr Mrázek on February 17, 2013, in a Wild win over the
Detroit Red Wings. On May 5, 2013, Zucker scored at 2:15 of the extra period to give the Wild a 3–2 victory over the
Chicago Blackhawks, to pull within 2–1 in the Western Conference quarterfinal series. However, the Blackhawks eliminated the Wild in five games. On March 26, 2014, Zucker underwent successful surgery on his left
quadriceps to repair a
tendon. He missed the remainder of the 2013–14 season, but was ready for the start of the 2014–15 campaign. In 2014–15 he scored 21 goals in 51 games, and was tenth in the NHL with a 16.9% shooting percentage. On October 25, 2015, he set a Wild team record by scoring 10 seconds into a 5–4 loss to the
Winnipeg Jets (Zucker later tied his own record in a game against the
Colorado Avalanche in April 2017). The only other NHL players who have scored within the first 10 seconds of two different games are Montreal's
Bobby Rousseau (once in 1962–63, and once in 1965–66) and
Yvan Cournoyer (both in 1973–74). In 2015–16 he played in a career-high 71 games, and had 13 goals and 10 assists. In June 2016, the Wild re-signed him to a two-year, $4 million contract. During the 2016–17 season, Zucker set new career highs once again by playing in 79 games while recording 22 goals and 25 assists for 47 points. He finished tied for sixth in team scoring. Zucker recorded his first NHL
hat-trick on November 9, 2017, against the
Montreal Canadiens. On May 2, 2018, Zucker was named a finalist for the
King Clancy Memorial Trophy, along with
P. K. Subban, and the Sedin brothers. On July 25, 2018, Zucker signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract extension with the Wild. Zucker scored his 100th NHL goal on October 13, 2018, in a home overtime loss against the
Carolina Hurricanes. He is the seventh Minnesota Wild player to record 100 goals with the team. Zucker received the 2018–19 King Clancy Memorial Trophy as "the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community." In his career with the Wild, in 456 NHL games he had 132 goals (fourth on the Wild's all-time list), 111 assists, and 243 points (9th). Zucker was under contract with the Penguins for three years, through the 2022–23 season, for an average annual value of $5.5 million. He made his Penguins debut on February 11 in a 2–1 loss to the
Tampa Bay Lightning, playing on a line with
Sidney Crosby. He scored his first two goals in a Penguins uniform against
Carey Price in a 4–1 win over the Montreal Canadiens on February 14. Zucker later made his Penguins playoff debut against the Canadiens on August 1 in Game 1 of their first round series. He scored in a Game 2 win for the Penguins to tie the series, but the Canadiens eliminated the Penguins to move on to the next round. In the
pandemic-shortened
2020–21 season, Zucker struggled, scoring eight goals and 17 points. In the
2021–22 season, Zucker suffered a number of injuries that limited him to just 32 games before coming back in March. In his first game back, and his first game against his former team, the Minnesota Wild, Zucker was injured again. He finished the season having played just 41 games.
Arizona Coyotes Having concluded his contract with the Penguins, Zucker was signed as a free agent to a one-year, $5.3 million contract with the Arizona Coyotes on July 1, 2023. He made his Coyotes debut in the season-opening
shootout victory over the
New Jersey Devils. He scored his first goal with Arizona on October 19 on a pass from
Matias Maccelli on the
power play in a 6–2 victory over the
St. Louis Blues. On January 2, 2024,
Nick Cousins of the
Florida Panthers laid a dangerous
check on Zucker's teammate,
Juuso Välimäki near the
boards. Zucker retaliated by checking Cousins hard into the boards, giving Cousins a concussion. On the play, Zucker received three major
penalties and was suspended for three games on January 3 for
boarding. In 51 games with Arizona, he had nine goals and 25 points.
Nashville Predators On March 8, 2024, at the NHL trading deadline, Zucker was traded to the
Nashville Predators in exchange for a
2024 sixth-round draft pick. He made his Predators debut on March 9 in a 2–1 victory over the
Columbus Blue Jackets. He scored his first goal for Nashville on March 13, knocking in a rebound from a
Colton Sissons shot in a 4–2 win over the Winnipeg Jets. He registered a multi-goal game on March 28, scoring twice against his former team, the Arizona Coyotes, in an 8–4 loss. In 18 games with the Predators, he recorded five goals and seven points. Nashville made the
2024 Stanley Cup playoffs and faced the
Vancouver Canucks in the first round. The Predators were eliminated in six games and Zucker scored one goal and three points in the series. Zucker signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract extension with the Sabres on March 7, 2025. ==International play==