With two days left before the official July 1 beginning of NHL free agency, speculation continues to swirl about the destination of New Jersey Devils captain Zach Parise. In a summer free agent market that's short on marquee talent, the 27-year-old winger is the most sought-after forward available.
But will he even leave New Jersey?
ESPN analyst Pierre LeBrun offered some insightful commentary Friday morning via his Twitter account (@Real_ESPNLeBrun), writing, "Zach Parise still hasn't officially 'decided' but my sense is that he dips his toes into the UFA market while keeping NJ very much in the mix."
Parise has made clear since the end of the Devils' season in the Stanley Cup Finals that the absence of a new contract with New Jersey on July 1 would not be indicative of his intention to leave, but a cynical observer might term that posturing to get the best possible offers from his potential suitors, presumed to be the Detroit Red Wings and the Minnesota Wild.
What may be most indicative of Parise's seriousness in keeping New Jersey in the mix, however, is his declaration earlier this month that he has no interest in joining the New York Rangers, who had been mentioned as a contender for his services.
The simple fact is that there's no objective reason for Parise to have ruled out the Rangers. The Blueshirts have a reasonable amount of room under the salary cap (some $21 million according to CapGeek.com), with restricted free agent Michael Del Zotto and bottom-six forwards Brandon Prust and Ruslan Fedotenko as their key free agents to re-sign this summer. The Rangers also have a talented team led by a young defensive corps and a Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender, with a complement of forwards that has enough star power (Brad Richards, Marian Gaborik) that Parise wouldn't be relied on too heavily, but could certainly use the production he would bring to the table.
If Parise was willing to publicly rule out the Rangers, his reasons would have to be personal. Part of that could come from his father, J.P. Parise, who played for the rival New York Islanders during the 1970s, but given that it was the elder Parise who caused a stir during the playoffs by saying that the Devils captain would be a good fit on Broadway, that probably isn't the case.
Parise's willingness to rule out the Rangers communicates a loyalty to the Devils, who made him their captain this year, jumped up to take him in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft when 16 other teams (including the Rangers) were willing to let him slide, and even signed his older brother, former University of North Dakota goaltender Jordan Parise, to a contract before he eventually pursued his career overseas.
There are questions, of course, as to how far that loyalty will go when Detroit and Minnesota come to call, to say nothing of other suitors. The Red Wings, who are also thought to be in the mix on Nashville Predators defenseman Ryan Suter, offer an Original Six franchise that is a perennial Stanley Cup contender, while the Wild offer a chance for Parise to go home to Minnesota. It's not inconceivable that Zach Parise could find himself a former Devil in a few days time.
But it's certainly not inconceivable that he'll stay, either.
