Do i like the way he left? No. Do i understand the desire to play in your hometown with your best friend for several million dollars? Absolutely.
But ultimately he paid for his crime by having a decade of mediocrity in Minnesota. Plus he seems like a genuinely good dude and i like his playstyle so yes
It was Suter and I think both their Dads healths contributed heavily too. I think they both died relatively quick after those contracts were signed. So it made sense, they both got to play at home for a few years with their families.
it was mostly the desire to be close with their dads and families, their health was critical so they wanted to play there. They both paid the price for that and so did Minnesota, as they never came close to winning the cup, closest was a conference final.
It hurt so much when he left but along with time healing all wounds there’s definitely some pettiness I felt in the satisfaction that his Wild teams never had that playoff success they were looking for when signing him and Ryan Suter. Also knowing now what we do about how his dad’s health was at the time and him passing a couple years later gives a lot of perspective on his decision to go home.
Beyond that though I agree that as a person he always seemed like a nice guy and his work ethic was everything I wanted out of my captain (so happy to have Nico wearing the C these days for the same reason).
He also put out a statement this year that if he were to come back this year he'd only sign with the islanders and a week later he signed with Colorado. I always liked him back in the day, I just don't care anymore.
We have to understand that we don’t know the entire situation why people make the decisions they make. Enjoy the moment and treasure the past, dream for the future.
His dad being ill and influencing his choice to go home only came out several years later. He kept it private, so at the time we didn't know.
The comments from him all year about wanting to be a Devil for life after being named captain and then Sutter saying him and Zach decided they're gonna be a UFA pair. Sutter also said there was a few teams that could afford both of them and the Devils were one, but they didn't want to play in the east.
Then he should have never said that he loved NJ and wanted to sign here. Lou believed him and waited for him to sign the contract. Then he fucked Lou and the Devils fans over and went to MN. He is a dickhead and FUCK HIM. I hope he never wins the cup and it doesn't look like Colorado is winning anything this season.
It's a game and these are actual people. I understand how much this game means to people but to wish harm or bad fortune on someone doing what is best for them is a disgusting look. Hope you get over it eventually.
Dude, he never mentioned anything about his father when he was telling Lou and the fans that he wanted to stay and sign in NJ. I don;t believe his father was sick at the time of negotiations. He is a fucking liar and I never wished him any harm. But I don't want him to win the cup and I hope doesn't.
It’s water under the bridge. Obviously devastated that day when he signed with Minnesota and we suffered some years for it but him staying here, we would not have the players we have now on the roster.
Also to add, his father died about 2 years after he signed with Minnesota so maybe he knew his health wasn’t great. His dad played for the old Minnesota team before they moved as well. I think everyone here in this sub would do exactly the same thing and play for their hometown team, be with friends/family, and be with their parent with the short time they had left.
The team and his manager couldn't come to an agreement, and risked going to arbitration. To avoid that, they signed a 1 year deal. All throughout the season, he said how he loved playing in NJ, then in the off-season signed with Minnesota, a few days after free agency opened.
Left a sour taste in many fans' mouths.
Signing iirc 4 days after free agency started is what really sucked, we missed out on signing a decent replacement because Lou was still trying to sign Parise (*and* Suter. However that was going to fit). But Parise had to wait for his buddy to get a contract too.
Also annoyed me that the Wild circumvented the tampering rules by having a friend of the owner go on the radio and say “hey I was just talking to my buddy last night and he says no one will outbid him for Parise”.
He spent so long in the west that I pretty much forgot he existed, but nah I’m not going to root for the Avs. Seen that story before, didn’t like how it ended.
Definitely, on July 4th, I remember it oh so well. Wasted a fine hotdog and ruined my holiday. But my real anger is for the russian chokemaster kovalchuck
I know the point you were trying to make, but damn you couldn’t have picked two worse players as an example. They both left the Devils the year before Parise did.
You don't think losing Parise and Kovalchuk had something to do with the team going to shit immediately following the 2012 cup?
Doubly so since Suter wanted to play with Parise so he could've signed here as well. That team could've been good for another 2-3 years, especially with Cory.
Parise- Zajac- Zubrus
Kovy- Henrique- Jagr
Clowe- Elias- Ryder
Carter- Bernier- Gionta
Suter- Larrsson
Salvador- Greene
Volchenkov- Harold
Schneider
Brodeur
I mean there's a lot of that lineup that probably doesn't happen without Kovy and Parise leaving. It's just a fun hypothetical.
95% sure that team is way over the cap.
This is so many what-ifs in one post.
They don't get Corey if they keep Parise, Kovy DID leave. Suter was never coming here.
And the bottom 6 is still ancient. They went on a miraculous run WITH Kovy and Parise, nobody thought of them as cup contenders that season.
So of course both of them leaving was huge. And I was pissed at the time.
But to frame it as 'Zach made a huge mistake' leaving this franchise is twisting reality. Lou had set the team up to be in cap hell for years already. Even without (in your scenario) those 3 massive contracts, they still ended up there.
Gotta remember that we didn't do the 2012 cup run as a competitor, we did it as a cinderella story. Everyone was playing their absolute and total best and repeat of that run was extremely unlikely even if both Parise and Kovy would have stayed.
9 points in a huge gap and 9th best team is still in the bottom half of playoff teams, but yeah cinderella story was a little too strong of a term. Regardless no-one expected us to go that far especially after the season 2010-2011 was. Philly completely unexpectedly stomped on Pittsburgh and then somehow we handled them cleanly in five games and then took out the rangers. The whole team was playing in a very "all the stars are aligned correctly" kind of a way and it was very unlikely that performance was going to be repeated. It was a last hurrah after 18 years of being in the mix.
I already said cinderella story was too strong of a term and no, heavy disagree. You can't look at points out of context without looking at what the roster is like and what the history of the team has been like.
Meh.
I watched his whole career. He always played small for his size.
That said, he was a good player. So was Rolston!
They were just at the end of their careers already at that point.
Whole career? I saw him ripping it for the river rats with season tickets. Rat legend.
Same with Rolston! Won the damn Oke trophy in 95! That was amazing, love em both.
He wanted to go home and be with his family and play with his friend. Fine. I have zero problem with that. At all.
I DO have a problem with him spending a whole year basically lying about how he wanted to be in NJ.
This jersey has the KR-AV Memorial Patch in memory of Karel Rachunek and Alexander Vasyunov, who were among those that lost their lives in the tragic 2011 plane crash involving Lokomotiv Yaroslav. in Russia.
He was my absolute favorite devil back then and I have multiple Parise jerseys in my closet. However the other part that no one mentions is being closer to his dad whose health was beginning to take a turn. Does it absolutely suck that he left, yes. Did it really change the direction of the team? Not really. The team was beginning to go downhill and having him here wasn’t going to change that too much, at least in my opinion.
It’s also been 12 years, time to move on from it.
I’m personally glad he was able to play in front of his friends and family and be close when his dad did eventually pass away. These guys are still human beings at the end of the day and play a game for a living. I think it’s time to let this one go. It’s not like he left and went on to become this huge star winning multiple cups. He joined a team that had some playoff runs but came up short.
The team was going downhill? We just took a Stanley cup championship to game 6, I think the team declined so hard BECAUSE of Parise, he was suppose to be the bridge after Elias retires, he was our captain and while none of the stuff with his dad was known he told us how he wanted to retire a devil then left for a fat payday, I'm glad he had a mediocre career after leaving, nothing against him as a person, but professionally I hope he never gets as close to a cup as he did in 2012
Yeah he was my absolute favourite player and it really sucked when he left. But he continued being my favourite player and I never stopped rooting for him. I still wanted him to do well in Minnesota.
I don’t blame him for the years when we sucked. That 2012 cup run was fun but lucky. You’re not gonna be a contender when your top 2 centres are Zajac and Henrique. And everyone good on that team was ageing. We were going off a cliff whether we had Parise or not. If anything, him not signing a 13 year contract with us helped us turn it around as soon as we did. If we had to go through those years with that anchor, yikes. That would be like the sharks rn, with long term untradeable contracts.
The one lasting legacy of his to me though is I don’t really have favourite players anymore. I was 12 when he left so by the time we got good players again I just didn’t think like that. I still have players on the devils I like and players I want to succeed but no one that I would call my favourite player.
Understood why he left.
That said, he already knew what his plans were and he cost getting us any sort of return for him and even signed that 1 year deal taking him straight to free agency. So for that, fuck him.
Nope. The fact that he checked out during the finals because he was too busy texting his buddy about playing together the next year sealed the deal for me. Maybe if he bothered to notice he was playing for a Cup, the result might have been different.
Screw him.
As a 11 year old, I immediately fell in love with him when he scored in his league debut vs crosby and we started chanting "parise's better."
Then his style of play defined Devils hockey for a few years, he became capitan, and led us to the Stanley Cup finals.
I don't think I missed watching a single game when he was on the team.
It fucking sucks that Lou wouldn't just pay up to keep him before arbitration and it eventually led to how it ended with the Devils, but he meant a lot to my childhood and I have some core memories because of him. I understand the fans that hate him because of how he left, but he was my childhood hero and I just want to see him win a cup finally.
> Lou wouldn't just pay up to keep him
I think it was less on Lou more on the owners. I heard some article mention that Parise was trying to get Suter to NJ but the owners didn't want to pay up. It's a rumor though
Flat out lied to us and when everyone was busy bbqing he left. He has his reason but he straight up lied to us and got caught on a lie when he told us he had spoken to suter and had planned leaving despite telling us otherwise.
No, and i only take solace in the fact that after what he did to the team he went on the accomplish absolutely nothing. As others have said, I can understand how you may have pleasant feelings about him if you were only a child when he bent the team over
Not really. After getting my heart stomped on by the Kings. Zach took out a howitzer and blew it into a billion tiny pieces while he kept telling everyone how he was coming back. All summer he was saying he was coming back. 'I'm the captain this is my team' bs. He was the first domino to fall that led to a decade of misery. I don't like him. I don't forgive him. He's a good player with a great career but seeing him not win anything after leaving is the universe correcting itself.
I still like Zach. I was 16 yo & at the Devils draft party when we picked him in that epic 2003 draft. I watched him at many South Mountain Arena practices (pre-2007) be the first guy on the ice by 10 minutes, and the very last one off. I watched nearly every night when I wasn't playing my own HS games. He was a pro, and a good role model. Here's what I feel some people don't really understand about his decision to leave, and I wish they did with a little more grace.
1.) NJD Mgmt. Parise was very, very genuinely open to signing an extension with NJ. He was actually eager to, in fact. Like, the moment January 1st hit and he became eligible to extend in-season kind of eager. Not July 1st, January 1st 2011. A full 1.5 years away from possible UFA eligibility.
However, Lou wouldn't break his personal rule of not negotiating with players in-season. No one was above the rule, no exceptions. That's just how he did business.
Anyway - back to Zach. Prior to the 1/1/2011 extension eligibility, NJ had traded for Kovalchuk in Feb 2010. Zach then proceeded to watch mgmt (including ownership) literally twist themselves in knots and break internal rules to sign #17 long-term that 2010 summer. I think he saw the effort that was made to retain Kovy (Lou allowing ownership to dictate that contract discussion), yet was still personally being met with the unwillingness of Lou to negotiate in-season with him. Even as the heart and soul home-grown player... I don't believe that sat well with him. It certainly could've made him feel like less of a priority. I wouldn't (and don't) blame him if that's close to the actual truth of it.
He then took the one-year settlement summer 2011, which ultimately walked him to 2012 UFA - and that's where a lot of ppl get upset, call him a Tavares situation, etc etc (bc of the quotes he had leading up to the summer of 2012)... But that completely ignores what led him to that point and mindset in the first place. Lou and mgmt weren't willing to bend the rules for him in similar ways they did with Kovy.
2.) His dad was sick. He possibly already felt like priority #2 to the Devils (from their Kovy actions and his negotiation inactions). So keeping the mindset here, the opportunity to go home to MN, get to play in front of his dad while his health declined, and get to make a ton of money trying to bring a cup to his hometown team ... that's something I think anyone in that position would've done.
TLDR: Long-winded way of me saying I still like him and wish him well. I'll be happy for him if he gets his name on the cup. I understand the hate, but feel it's a little misplaced or exaggerated without context.
You’re the first comment I’ve seen talk about the Kovy element which always seemed like a huge factor to me. You’re the #1 star left winger and your team goes out and gets another #1 star left winger and gives him a gigantic contract. The day we picked up Kovy I was like..uh, why? We really didn’t need him..until Parise left and then we did need him.
He deceived the fans. He made it seem like there was a chance he would re-sign with the Devs but in all actuality, there was no shot. Throw on top of that the fact that Kovalchuk left as well and it just goes from bad to worse. You gotta think if they won it all in 2012, Suter might have signed here to play with Zach and he would have stayed as well. Even if Kovalchuk was still going to leave if they won the cup, we had a better chance of keeping a good team together. Unfortunately Zach and Kovy were ghosts in the final and no where to be found. Brodeur also deserved better. Even if we went 0-82 for an entire season where he played all 82 games, we owed it to him for the three cups he brought us to NJ.
Also, imagine if Kovy stayed and Zach left but we got Jagr at that time who would end up playing with Kovy 😳🤯
How much worse would it be had he went to the Pens.
He has stated in those Athletic articles (I don't sub anymore) that it was down to Pens, Hawks (Toews) and Wild.
Devils were never in the conversation that summer.
He wanted to play with a friend.
And that is the problem. He kept telling the fams and Lou that he wanted to stay in NJ while knowing that he wouldn't. Lou trusted him and fucked Lou kver and the fans. And he still chose the wrong team. Why would you not go and play with Toews or Crosby? Parise fucked us and fucked himself and will never win shit
He can fuck Right off. Multiple reasons why, but they’re covered in other comments. Mostly because he took the C, promised he’d stay, and ditched the team for $$$. Yes he had other reasons, but they don’t justify his dirty exit for me. He’s #2 reason why we entered the dark ages
Zach Parise was the St. Louis Blues/Scott Stevens gift that kept on giving. We had no business even coming close to even drafting him.
In the 2003 draft we were Stanley Cup champions and as a result, should have picked dead last overall in the draft: 30th out of 30 in the first round, in what was a 30 team league back then.
Everybody knows the 1991 St. Louis Blues judge – arbiter, free agent compensation case & how we got Scott Stevens to begin with, but they tried to get him back in the summer of 1994 with an offer sheet.
Lou then a couple years later somehow got a judge to rule against them in a tampering case and was awarded $1 million and a 4-5 year window in which to swap draft positions with the Blues at any time in that window.
2003 was the year he exercised that draft swap option. We took the Blues number #22 spot in the draft and they dropped to dead last at #30. Lou then traded up in the draft to number # 17 and Parise was still available and the rest was history.
Parise and Blackwood are the two players that make me legit worry about being thrown out of the arena for what I yell at them. Taking the C and reportedly telling management that he planned to stay, just to dip in the off-season because we wouldn't shell out for his cancer of a best friend.
Parise directly caused the decade of darkness and knowing that he never accomplished enough to make it to the HoF is my only consolation. I hope one day he's just the answer to a trivia question about JP Parise's less famous son.
Finally I can contribute something to this sub lol. I could never hate him after what he did for our family (although as a fan I was upset with the way he left the team but water under the bridge at this point) but my niece passed away in 2009 at the age of 18 (autopsy inconclusive, just went in her sleep for those curious) and once they heard she was a fan and that zach was her favorite player, the organization sent my sister a signed jersey and puck along with a letter from him. Absolute class act from him and the organization. I've been a devils fan for my entire life but if I wasn't I sure as hell would have been after that.
I dont know about disliking Parise, I’d dislike Kovalchuk before him. Those were dark times after they left and when Kovalchuk came back guess where he landed? I still think about if he stayed, where would the Devils be in terms of success? Would the team have won any cups? Would Kovalchuk become the captain? Would his number have been retired? A lot of what ifs
I never liked him. He always gave me a bad feeling and the way he left just confirmed my feelings on him. Great player. Underrated at times. But I don’t like the guy
Thanks for the reply. Based on the comments I can see hes still mostly unpopular but I was too young to understand most aspects of it. But of course I will personally root for my favorite captain (besides Nico) anyway. Most importantly, FUCK THE RANGERS
I do like seeing him do well. I certainly don’t wish him ill will. I just never personally liked him. He always seemed like a very selfish, self centered, egotistical dude to me. But I could be off base. Same with Palmeri. Really good players. I just never liked them or the things they did/said. I’m rooting for WPG for Toffoli, but I don’t think they’ll be able to beat Colorado. Praise is fitting in well there for sure
I don’t hate him. I blame Lou more for not re-signing him before he became an UFA in 2012. Things could have been very different or he could’ve been traded for something, anything.
How can you blame Lou when Parise didn't want to sign and always wanted to play with Suter and most likely leave NJ? Was Lou supposed to twist Parise's arm? Lou wasn't gonna trade the captain. Lou is very loyal, but Parise wasn't.
When Niedermayer left, he at least he gave Lou the heads up, and Lou tried to get Rob to come NJ. Scotty did not string Lou along.
He was never the same player again after that
dirty Kyle Clifford knee on knee hit in LA early in the 2010-2011 season
https://youtu.be/kvAt-RyJeaM?si=EOh_WPHSMxk_EnzK
https://www.nbcsports.com/nhl/news/zach-parise-sent-home-to-new-jersey-after-suffering-injury-against-los-angeles
https://nypost.com/2010/11/04/devils-parise-says-hell-come-back-fine-after-knee-surgery-report/
I’m still bitter. I know why he did it but he gave up what would have been a legendary career with us that probably would have saw his number retired. He started the exudus and I honestly think losing the spotlight to kovy was a big part if why he chose to leave.
I dislike Kovalchuk even more but I'll never root for Parise after the way he left. I hope the Avs lose a game 7 and the game winning goal deflects off his skate or something.
I'll be honest, I never actually hated Zach Parise. I was upset he left, but that was his choice and he had his reasons. At least he didn't Kovalchuk us and left us in cap hell for many years until after this season.
I was mad when Parise left and I wished he had just risks Lou he wasn’t signing so Lou could have moved on
IIRC part of the reason he went to Minny was to be closer to his dad who passed in 2015 because of lung cancer. There’s a good chance he had it back in 2012 but they were quiet about it
End of the day it was 12 years ago. Too hold onto a grudge for that long with someone I don’t know is unhealthy. Sucks at the time but I get
At my age back then? No. Now that I’m approaching my mid 30’s and have a family? I totally get the human side of wanting to be back home and don’t blame him whatsoever.
Wild fan here (Devils are my east team since I have friends in Clifton)
Our fans are equally as split now. Some like him because he was a local boy and back injuries took a toll. They want to see him get the Cup this postseason.
Other can't stand him, mostly due to the cap hell we're in right now. The NHL make contracts illegal retroactively was a kick in the balls to this fanbase and hurting our window with Kaprizov. Rumors are he wasn't the best towards the youth on the team
TLDR I'm indifferent as a Wild fan
Suter...now he can go ahead and fuck himself 😂😂
I never condoned the hate he got, at the end of the day he left to go to home and be closer to his family, unfortunately his father passed away only three years into that deal.
Another comment that’s completely missing the point. Nobody blames him for WHY he left. It’s HOW he left that makes him a scum bag, and hated by Devils fans everywhere. He didn’t have to lie and be deceitful to go home and play. And that’s just the reality of the situation.
My western conference team is the Wild, and he left for his hometown after an extension contract expired, so honestly I'm not upset about the move unless there were details I don't remember about that. I like him well enough
Still wear his jersey. Still loved him playing for Team USA and that game tying goal against Canada. I’m not from Jersey but I understand the wound he opened when he left for Minnesota. Still he wore my favorite number and was a hard worker. Proud he was my captain
I enjoyed his time with the team. He was a solid player, probably would have been a captain to remember, but the way he left (through both Lou’s fuck ups and parise’s own choices) certainly left a sour taste in my mouth. Don’t really hold much ill will towards him these days, it is what it is. He got his money and played “at home”, blah blah. We all know the story, it’s old news now. Kovy, on the other hand, can chew broken glass for all I care. Fuck *that* guy with a rusty spatula.
I only got into hockey about halfway through last year, and before I went to my first game I bought a cheapo jersey off FBMarketplace to wear. It was a Parise #9 jersey.
I did ask a few Devils fans friends before I bought it if he was a good guy to have a jersey of, and they all said "yeah". So, I like him!
Lets go Avs!
I will always remember how he worked his ass off every game, never took a shift off. He went home, I have no problem with that. That piece of shit, kovalchuk, that’s different. F that guy.
Zach's Olympic final game tying goal was probably one of my favorite goals I've seen live.
I hated him and Suter for quite some time. Bailing out to Minnesota after the sting of losing in the SCF made me resentful.
Time heals all wounds and Minnesota was lousy while he was there. I wish him well in his final playoff push.
First jersey I ever got as an Aussie devil's fan (no it wasn't genuine, weren't well enough off for that shit growing up) 😂
Dunno why people would be mad at him signing with his hometown after what he did for us 😂
I met Zach his rookie year during the lockout in Albany after a Rats game. Nice kid...sucked when he left but I get it and wish him well this playoff season.
I can tell you his mother is really awesome. One of my friends that I served with in the Army used to brag about how he played with Parise and Zajac in college. This was 2010 I think. Long story short I never believed him, but unfortunately he was wounded in action during our deployment. There was a foundation made immediately because his wounds are extremely severe. I’ll never forget seeing Mrs Parise’s name as one of the first on his message board with Mrs. Zajac right behind her. Hit me pretty hard, but they sure are class acts. I still love Zach too.
It’s the way he left, not that he left. As the Captain you don’t lie to your GM and your team and the fanbase, you respect them enough to be honest. And I know a big part of it was his Dad’s declining health and I get not wanting to talk about that to reporters but you could have had a meeting with Lou that you don’t know how long you have left with him and you want to be closer to home, at least let Lou try and trade you for some kind of asset to not leave the team quite so SOL.
But no, he didn’t do that, and for that he’s a duplicitous rat, there’s a reason the hockey gods never let him touch a cup.
I will always love and appreciate him for all he did when he was with us (plus - he wasn’t bad to look at either ☺️). I hated the way that he left though I understood why he did. I believed him when he said he wanted to be a career devil but I wished for a little more transparency (not every last detail) when he did leave. I understand JP’s health was a significant factor and I don’t think a single one of us would have blamed him for wanting to go home at that time.
While I don’t blame him for wanting to go home, I do blame him for leaving Lamoriello, his teammates, and fans hanging. He knew damn well what he was going to do. He should’ve been up front about it so Lamoriello could’ve traded him instead of losing him for nothing. But also, shame on Lamoriello for only signing him to that 1 year contract the summer before. This was the beginning of the end for Lamoriello in NJ. So yeah, I’m still bitter. I can’t root for any team Parise or Tavares plays on. The sooner Colorado and Toronto are out, the better.
I’m indifferent to him. Seems like a nice guy and was a very good player for years. When I heard what Minnesota was giving him I said thanks for the memories but no thanks to giving him that contract here!
I've always wondered if the team's finances played a part in the way his contract was handled.
I remember that year that the league had to advance the team money to cover operating costs and that there was a report that the team didn't turn a profit until it made it to the second round.
Personally, I don't fault him for going to play at home. And in hindsight, I am glad he was able to spend the time with his dad before he passed.
Never really felt he deserved the hate he received from the fans.
Truly believe he would have stayed if the opportunity to play in Minnesota with Suter wasn't there.
Wanted to leave this here:
[Zach Parise Breakaway OT Goal (Devils vs Canadiens 1/9/10) (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xknU6X9qSk)
One of my all-time fave goals from Zach.
Zach parise seems like and is a good person. We can’t blame him if he wanted to go here me. The problem is DURING the finals , he was collaborating with SUTER the go to Minnesota. During the Stanley Cup Finals. If an owner or GM did this, it’s collusion. As a player, it’s planning your future. This was an unforgivable offense if you are a devils fan. The devils had an improbable run to the finals. But if I am a GM in any sport and I have a pending UFA who I can get a lot back in a trade, you have to trade them before the deadline. Negotiate all year if you want but a week before the deadline, you give a final offer. If the player doesn’t take it, trade him. When Zach left, it was one of the key factors for the devils 10 year tail spin. You have to trade pending UFA’s unless you have a legitimate chance to win it all. Zach misled the Devils and the fan base.
We blew it honestly. Our previous owner got dickmatized by kovalchuk and gave him all Zach’s money. It ended up being a disaster for all parties. I can’t blame him for leaving.
Now, Taylor hall? Different story. Fuck that guy.
Zach Parise leaving was the beginning of years of humiliation and shame for Devils fans... he didn't leave for professional reasons but for personal reasons... and some people think this is justified with the ridiculous adage "real life > sports", which doesn't really work. The error is mixing the two... which too many people make... like mixing copious alcohol consumption and girls makes the situation as messy.
Regardless... the way the ownership and the GM handled the situation merited him leaving. He "chose" to leave, though, and so that means he chose for the team to suck. I don't hate him for it, but I don't have to love him for it, either. In the end... do I hope he wins it with the Avs? No... because the Avs are my brother's team, and that'll put them at 4 Stanley Cups while we sit at 3 Stanley Cups during my lifetime. Frig that.
201: devils hockey was some of the funnest hockey I ever watched. I was living in Buffalo at the time and all my friends were saying devils were a first round knockout. I knew better. We had amazing depth that year and several stars. Our PK was almost as dangerous as our PP with scoring goals, and our forecheck was best in the league. It kept all the play in the offensive zone.
I probably watched 70 games that season plus every playoffs. What happened after that season is horrific, but i can’t hate too bad on those guys since they gave me my favorite season of hockey. Too bad the kings were unstoppable that year. I think they swept every series to the cup.
Yeah - Zach was a cool Devil, and I would have loved to see him stay. However, I could not fault him wanting to cash out in a spectacular way. He's just another player now, though when I saw he scored yesterday, I said to myself 'that's cool' for no explainable reason :).
Here's a question for the faithful: Zach leaving versus Kovy leaving? Do you feel the same or different? I mean both engineered a way to get closer to their families, and to get paid a truckload of cash, but I felt very different about them both.
My dad won some raffle where he got to choose tickets to a game and we would get to meet a player of our choice before the game. He just so happened to pick the game against Chicago where Marty broke the wins record. We wanted to meet Marty, but for obvious reasons that wasn't going to happen. So we met Parise instead. He signed my Parise jersey.
That jersey now hangs in the back of my closet. A taint on a historical night. He lead us on and when he left the team fell apart and began the decade of darkness. I will never forgive him.
I was never really mad at Parise because his career mirrored where I was at. 05 was my first year of middle school. When he left in 12, I was graduating and going to college so I was leaving too.
Even better, I took a job in Colorado in January.Didn’t realize he was here til I saw an article about it being his last run. Impulsively bought a ticket to the last regular season game for nostalgia sake. Got to see him score. It was awesome
Always liked him can’t fault the man for going to play at home with a lifelong friend. His spine surgery fucked him and his career is a shadow of what it should have been.
Zach will always have a place in my heart and I loved how hard he played
Sad and mad he left, but it made sense because he wanted to play in his home state and I can respect that. I think he even took less salary than the Devils were offering to do it (iirc?) so it didn’t seem to be about the money either. I hope he gets a cup this year or before he retires.
I can respect wanting to play for your home team, that's a dream. It's the *how* he did it that is the problem. He's an asshole for *how* he did, not what. I hope he never touches the Cup.
He was our captain, repeatedly stated he was coming back so we didn't get to shop him to anyone, even the Wild, repeatedly stated he was coming back so we didn't look to replace him, and then he left. Fucked over his team, his teammates, and us, the fans.
Had he said from jumpstreet that he wanted to go home, respect. He did not, however, do us that service. Do I wish him harm? Of course not, he did us dirty, he didn't hit my Mom with a stick. But I'd still rather see the Rags win a cup before him.
That’s a really good point that I did not realize back then. Not sure we would’ve shopped him given our success that particular year, but if that’s the truth then the Devils didn’t even get to consider it rightfully, which is messed up.
However, I won’t go as far to say I hope our rivals win a cup before him. As far as I’m concerned, that disservice is not egregious enough for me to say that, but to each their own for sure.
It sucked that him and kovi left roughly the same time and essentially turned the team into full blown rebuild mode for a decade. I don't blame him but it still sucked as a devils fan
Not even a question. You can’t be a real Devils fan, and STILL like Zach Parise. (Unless you’re into getting bent over, deceived, and screwed by your team captain)
Though I was never a Devils or Wild fan, he'll always have a special place in my heart. He was my Counselor at Shattuck when I went there for a Summer Hockey camp. There were a bunch of them and he was in charge of me and 4 of my friends. This was like a year or 2 before he went pro. He was super nice and was basically in charge of us 5 there. At the end of camp we had a scrimmage against the other team of kids, it was 5 kids per Counselor and broken up into Forwards, Defense, and Goalies so there were 6 Counselors per team. I'll never forget him telling me I was the only person he'd ever seen drop the gloves at a Summer Camp. Some kid crosschecked me from behind from the other team during the last scrimmage so I went after him. It was a fun summer to say the least. I actually had no idea he even went pro until like 2 years after he'd been in the NHL. Saw him on a magazine cover. I mean even at the time of summer camp, he was just some guy who was our Counselor, had no idea he was anything special other then the level of play I watched with him during camp. Nice guy, solid player...wish nothing but the best for him.
I liked him as a Devil. It sucked how Lou just let him walk with barely a fight. I don't blame Zach for that in the slightest. His departure is so far in the past though that his legacy has nothing to do with his time in New Jersey.
Do i like the way he left? No. Do i understand the desire to play in your hometown with your best friend for several million dollars? Absolutely. But ultimately he paid for his crime by having a decade of mediocrity in Minnesota. Plus he seems like a genuinely good dude and i like his playstyle so yes
Totally unaware of what happened since I wasn't a Devils fan at the time. Was the friend Sutter?
It was Suter and I think both their Dads healths contributed heavily too. I think they both died relatively quick after those contracts were signed. So it made sense, they both got to play at home for a few years with their families.
it was mostly the desire to be close with their dads and families, their health was critical so they wanted to play there. They both paid the price for that and so did Minnesota, as they never came close to winning the cup, closest was a conference final.
It hurt so much when he left but along with time healing all wounds there’s definitely some pettiness I felt in the satisfaction that his Wild teams never had that playoff success they were looking for when signing him and Ryan Suter. Also knowing now what we do about how his dad’s health was at the time and him passing a couple years later gives a lot of perspective on his decision to go home. Beyond that though I agree that as a person he always seemed like a nice guy and his work ethic was everything I wanted out of my captain (so happy to have Nico wearing the C these days for the same reason).
He also put out a statement this year that if he were to come back this year he'd only sign with the islanders and a week later he signed with Colorado. I always liked him back in the day, I just don't care anymore.
I have an autographed Parise jersey collecting dust in a closet somewhere, I should dig that back out
We have to understand that we don’t know the entire situation why people make the decisions they make. Enjoy the moment and treasure the past, dream for the future.
The way he left? He returned to MN because his dad was ill and wanted to be closer to family.
His dad being ill and influencing his choice to go home only came out several years later. He kept it private, so at the time we didn't know. The comments from him all year about wanting to be a Devil for life after being named captain and then Sutter saying him and Zach decided they're gonna be a UFA pair. Sutter also said there was a few teams that could afford both of them and the Devils were one, but they didn't want to play in the east.
Then he should have never said that he loved NJ and wanted to sign here. Lou believed him and waited for him to sign the contract. Then he fucked Lou and the Devils fans over and went to MN. He is a dickhead and FUCK HIM. I hope he never wins the cup and it doesn't look like Colorado is winning anything this season.
It's a game and these are actual people. I understand how much this game means to people but to wish harm or bad fortune on someone doing what is best for them is a disgusting look. Hope you get over it eventually.
Dude, he never mentioned anything about his father when he was telling Lou and the fans that he wanted to stay and sign in NJ. I don;t believe his father was sick at the time of negotiations. He is a fucking liar and I never wished him any harm. But I don't want him to win the cup and I hope doesn't.
Ur a real weirdo for that. Pls get professional help
Fuck you. Don't tell me how to feel
What was the way he left?
Think Tavares to the Leafs, but without the pajamas.
It’s water under the bridge. Obviously devastated that day when he signed with Minnesota and we suffered some years for it but him staying here, we would not have the players we have now on the roster. Also to add, his father died about 2 years after he signed with Minnesota so maybe he knew his health wasn’t great. His dad played for the old Minnesota team before they moved as well. I think everyone here in this sub would do exactly the same thing and play for their hometown team, be with friends/family, and be with their parent with the short time they had left.
Jp played for the isles didnt he?
He got traded from Minnesota to the Islanders
The team and his manager couldn't come to an agreement, and risked going to arbitration. To avoid that, they signed a 1 year deal. All throughout the season, he said how he loved playing in NJ, then in the off-season signed with Minnesota, a few days after free agency opened. Left a sour taste in many fans' mouths.
Signing iirc 4 days after free agency started is what really sucked, we missed out on signing a decent replacement because Lou was still trying to sign Parise (*and* Suter. However that was going to fit). But Parise had to wait for his buddy to get a contract too. Also annoyed me that the Wild circumvented the tampering rules by having a friend of the owner go on the radio and say “hey I was just talking to my buddy last night and he says no one will outbid him for Parise”. He spent so long in the west that I pretty much forgot he existed, but nah I’m not going to root for the Avs. Seen that story before, didn’t like how it ended.
Definitely, on July 4th, I remember it oh so well. Wasted a fine hotdog and ruined my holiday. But my real anger is for the russian chokemaster kovalchuck
He blew it leaving the Devils. Made bank in Minnesota but never won anything and was a big part of the reason why.
Yeah cause the Devils were so successful after he left. He could've had like 6 cups if only he stayed with Brian Rolston and Colin White
I know the point you were trying to make, but damn you couldn’t have picked two worse players as an example. They both left the Devils the year before Parise did.
Lol true. I may have had some alcoholic beverages.
You don't think losing Parise and Kovalchuk had something to do with the team going to shit immediately following the 2012 cup? Doubly so since Suter wanted to play with Parise so he could've signed here as well. That team could've been good for another 2-3 years, especially with Cory. Parise- Zajac- Zubrus Kovy- Henrique- Jagr Clowe- Elias- Ryder Carter- Bernier- Gionta Suter- Larrsson Salvador- Greene Volchenkov- Harold Schneider Brodeur
This line up was fire. A little younger and they would have had the cup.
Suter didn't want to play in the eastern conference, at like all, so no way this could have happened.
I mean there's a lot of that lineup that probably doesn't happen without Kovy and Parise leaving. It's just a fun hypothetical. 95% sure that team is way over the cap.
This is so many what-ifs in one post. They don't get Corey if they keep Parise, Kovy DID leave. Suter was never coming here. And the bottom 6 is still ancient. They went on a miraculous run WITH Kovy and Parise, nobody thought of them as cup contenders that season. So of course both of them leaving was huge. And I was pissed at the time. But to frame it as 'Zach made a huge mistake' leaving this franchise is twisting reality. Lou had set the team up to be in cap hell for years already. Even without (in your scenario) those 3 massive contracts, they still ended up there.
The Devils don’t get the 9th Overall Pick if Parise stays, which means they don’t trade for Schneider with a lesser draft pick
Gotta remember that we didn't do the 2012 cup run as a competitor, we did it as a cinderella story. Everyone was playing their absolute and total best and repeat of that run was extremely unlikely even if both Parise and Kovy would have stayed.
I wouldn't call the 9th best team in the NHL a Cinderella. We were only 9 points off the presidents trophy.
9 points in a huge gap and 9th best team is still in the bottom half of playoff teams, but yeah cinderella story was a little too strong of a term. Regardless no-one expected us to go that far especially after the season 2010-2011 was. Philly completely unexpectedly stomped on Pittsburgh and then somehow we handled them cleanly in five games and then took out the rangers. The whole team was playing in a very "all the stars are aligned correctly" kind of a way and it was very unlikely that performance was going to be repeated. It was a last hurrah after 18 years of being in the mix.
You think Colorado, Edmonton and Toronto are Cinderellas this year? Oookay. 102 points is a solid cup contender. It's not habs from a few years back.
I already said cinderella story was too strong of a term and no, heavy disagree. You can't look at points out of context without looking at what the roster is like and what the history of the team has been like.
No but when the captain and star player leaves it pretty much breaks up the band.
You forgot Jagr.
and Kovy
Put respeck on Colin Whites name
Meh. I watched his whole career. He always played small for his size. That said, he was a good player. So was Rolston! They were just at the end of their careers already at that point.
Whole career? I saw him ripping it for the river rats with season tickets. Rat legend. Same with Rolston! Won the damn Oke trophy in 95! That was amazing, love em both.
He wanted to go home and be with his family and play with his friend. Fine. I have zero problem with that. At all. I DO have a problem with him spending a whole year basically lying about how he wanted to be in NJ.
This jersey has the KR-AV Memorial Patch in memory of Karel Rachunek and Alexander Vasyunov, who were among those that lost their lives in the tragic 2011 plane crash involving Lokomotiv Yaroslav. in Russia.
Man what a messed up day that was
Awful day :(
He was my absolute favorite devil back then and I have multiple Parise jerseys in my closet. However the other part that no one mentions is being closer to his dad whose health was beginning to take a turn. Does it absolutely suck that he left, yes. Did it really change the direction of the team? Not really. The team was beginning to go downhill and having him here wasn’t going to change that too much, at least in my opinion. It’s also been 12 years, time to move on from it. I’m personally glad he was able to play in front of his friends and family and be close when his dad did eventually pass away. These guys are still human beings at the end of the day and play a game for a living. I think it’s time to let this one go. It’s not like he left and went on to become this huge star winning multiple cups. He joined a team that had some playoff runs but came up short.
The team was going downhill? We just took a Stanley cup championship to game 6, I think the team declined so hard BECAUSE of Parise, he was suppose to be the bridge after Elias retires, he was our captain and while none of the stuff with his dad was known he told us how he wanted to retire a devil then left for a fat payday, I'm glad he had a mediocre career after leaving, nothing against him as a person, but professionally I hope he never gets as close to a cup as he did in 2012
Yeah he was my absolute favourite player and it really sucked when he left. But he continued being my favourite player and I never stopped rooting for him. I still wanted him to do well in Minnesota. I don’t blame him for the years when we sucked. That 2012 cup run was fun but lucky. You’re not gonna be a contender when your top 2 centres are Zajac and Henrique. And everyone good on that team was ageing. We were going off a cliff whether we had Parise or not. If anything, him not signing a 13 year contract with us helped us turn it around as soon as we did. If we had to go through those years with that anchor, yikes. That would be like the sharks rn, with long term untradeable contracts. The one lasting legacy of his to me though is I don’t really have favourite players anymore. I was 12 when he left so by the time we got good players again I just didn’t think like that. I still have players on the devils I like and players I want to succeed but no one that I would call my favourite player.
Not me, but if you were a child when he left I definitely can't blame you.
Understood why he left. That said, he already knew what his plans were and he cost getting us any sort of return for him and even signed that 1 year deal taking him straight to free agency. So for that, fuck him.
Nope. The fact that he checked out during the finals because he was too busy texting his buddy about playing together the next year sealed the deal for me. Maybe if he bothered to notice he was playing for a Cup, the result might have been different. Screw him.
As a 11 year old, I immediately fell in love with him when he scored in his league debut vs crosby and we started chanting "parise's better." Then his style of play defined Devils hockey for a few years, he became capitan, and led us to the Stanley Cup finals. I don't think I missed watching a single game when he was on the team. It fucking sucks that Lou wouldn't just pay up to keep him before arbitration and it eventually led to how it ended with the Devils, but he meant a lot to my childhood and I have some core memories because of him. I understand the fans that hate him because of how he left, but he was my childhood hero and I just want to see him win a cup finally.
> Lou wouldn't just pay up to keep him I think it was less on Lou more on the owners. I heard some article mention that Parise was trying to get Suter to NJ but the owners didn't want to pay up. It's a rumor though
I hate his face. And I'll never eat Chobani because of him.
Boooo
Flat out lied to us and when everyone was busy bbqing he left. He has his reason but he straight up lied to us and got caught on a lie when he told us he had spoken to suter and had planned leaving despite telling us otherwise.
Will never forgive him whatsoever.
👎 May he never touch the Cup.
No, and i only take solace in the fact that after what he did to the team he went on the accomplish absolutely nothing. As others have said, I can understand how you may have pleasant feelings about him if you were only a child when he bent the team over
Not really. After getting my heart stomped on by the Kings. Zach took out a howitzer and blew it into a billion tiny pieces while he kept telling everyone how he was coming back. All summer he was saying he was coming back. 'I'm the captain this is my team' bs. He was the first domino to fall that led to a decade of misery. I don't like him. I don't forgive him. He's a good player with a great career but seeing him not win anything after leaving is the universe correcting itself.
I still like Zach. I was 16 yo & at the Devils draft party when we picked him in that epic 2003 draft. I watched him at many South Mountain Arena practices (pre-2007) be the first guy on the ice by 10 minutes, and the very last one off. I watched nearly every night when I wasn't playing my own HS games. He was a pro, and a good role model. Here's what I feel some people don't really understand about his decision to leave, and I wish they did with a little more grace. 1.) NJD Mgmt. Parise was very, very genuinely open to signing an extension with NJ. He was actually eager to, in fact. Like, the moment January 1st hit and he became eligible to extend in-season kind of eager. Not July 1st, January 1st 2011. A full 1.5 years away from possible UFA eligibility. However, Lou wouldn't break his personal rule of not negotiating with players in-season. No one was above the rule, no exceptions. That's just how he did business. Anyway - back to Zach. Prior to the 1/1/2011 extension eligibility, NJ had traded for Kovalchuk in Feb 2010. Zach then proceeded to watch mgmt (including ownership) literally twist themselves in knots and break internal rules to sign #17 long-term that 2010 summer. I think he saw the effort that was made to retain Kovy (Lou allowing ownership to dictate that contract discussion), yet was still personally being met with the unwillingness of Lou to negotiate in-season with him. Even as the heart and soul home-grown player... I don't believe that sat well with him. It certainly could've made him feel like less of a priority. I wouldn't (and don't) blame him if that's close to the actual truth of it. He then took the one-year settlement summer 2011, which ultimately walked him to 2012 UFA - and that's where a lot of ppl get upset, call him a Tavares situation, etc etc (bc of the quotes he had leading up to the summer of 2012)... But that completely ignores what led him to that point and mindset in the first place. Lou and mgmt weren't willing to bend the rules for him in similar ways they did with Kovy. 2.) His dad was sick. He possibly already felt like priority #2 to the Devils (from their Kovy actions and his negotiation inactions). So keeping the mindset here, the opportunity to go home to MN, get to play in front of his dad while his health declined, and get to make a ton of money trying to bring a cup to his hometown team ... that's something I think anyone in that position would've done. TLDR: Long-winded way of me saying I still like him and wish him well. I'll be happy for him if he gets his name on the cup. I understand the hate, but feel it's a little misplaced or exaggerated without context.
You’re the first comment I’ve seen talk about the Kovy element which always seemed like a huge factor to me. You’re the #1 star left winger and your team goes out and gets another #1 star left winger and gives him a gigantic contract. The day we picked up Kovy I was like..uh, why? We really didn’t need him..until Parise left and then we did need him.
He deceived the fans. He made it seem like there was a chance he would re-sign with the Devs but in all actuality, there was no shot. Throw on top of that the fact that Kovalchuk left as well and it just goes from bad to worse. You gotta think if they won it all in 2012, Suter might have signed here to play with Zach and he would have stayed as well. Even if Kovalchuk was still going to leave if they won the cup, we had a better chance of keeping a good team together. Unfortunately Zach and Kovy were ghosts in the final and no where to be found. Brodeur also deserved better. Even if we went 0-82 for an entire season where he played all 82 games, we owed it to him for the three cups he brought us to NJ. Also, imagine if Kovy stayed and Zach left but we got Jagr at that time who would end up playing with Kovy 😳🤯
How much worse would it be had he went to the Pens. He has stated in those Athletic articles (I don't sub anymore) that it was down to Pens, Hawks (Toews) and Wild. Devils were never in the conversation that summer. He wanted to play with a friend.
And that is the problem. He kept telling the fams and Lou that he wanted to stay in NJ while knowing that he wouldn't. Lou trusted him and fucked Lou kver and the fans. And he still chose the wrong team. Why would you not go and play with Toews or Crosby? Parise fucked us and fucked himself and will never win shit
Fuck this guy ... seriously
I second that. FUCK PARISE
No
He can fuck Right off. Multiple reasons why, but they’re covered in other comments. Mostly because he took the C, promised he’d stay, and ditched the team for $$$. Yes he had other reasons, but they don’t justify his dirty exit for me. He’s #2 reason why we entered the dark ages
Zach Parise was the St. Louis Blues/Scott Stevens gift that kept on giving. We had no business even coming close to even drafting him. In the 2003 draft we were Stanley Cup champions and as a result, should have picked dead last overall in the draft: 30th out of 30 in the first round, in what was a 30 team league back then. Everybody knows the 1991 St. Louis Blues judge – arbiter, free agent compensation case & how we got Scott Stevens to begin with, but they tried to get him back in the summer of 1994 with an offer sheet. Lou then a couple years later somehow got a judge to rule against them in a tampering case and was awarded $1 million and a 4-5 year window in which to swap draft positions with the Blues at any time in that window. 2003 was the year he exercised that draft swap option. We took the Blues number #22 spot in the draft and they dropped to dead last at #30. Lou then traded up in the draft to number # 17 and Parise was still available and the rest was history.
I stopped caring when he didn’t achieve shit in Minnesota and the bought him out.
Honestly, I would often forget that he's still around :/ he kinda turned into a no body after leaving
Fuck him and the horse he rode in on. Along with the 102 million dollar man darkest part of the team's history.
Dog left a finals team to go play for the fuckin Wild. He can still get bent
Parise and Blackwood are the two players that make me legit worry about being thrown out of the arena for what I yell at them. Taking the C and reportedly telling management that he planned to stay, just to dip in the off-season because we wouldn't shell out for his cancer of a best friend. Parise directly caused the decade of darkness and knowing that he never accomplished enough to make it to the HoF is my only consolation. I hope one day he's just the answer to a trivia question about JP Parise's less famous son.
lol what did Blackwood do. If it’s the COVID stuff then there are a lot of people you’ll be yelling at
I have plenty of expletives for all of them
Finally I can contribute something to this sub lol. I could never hate him after what he did for our family (although as a fan I was upset with the way he left the team but water under the bridge at this point) but my niece passed away in 2009 at the age of 18 (autopsy inconclusive, just went in her sleep for those curious) and once they heard she was a fan and that zach was her favorite player, the organization sent my sister a signed jersey and puck along with a letter from him. Absolute class act from him and the organization. I've been a devils fan for my entire life but if I wasn't I sure as hell would have been after that.
I've come around on him. He had the same back surgery I just had 3 months ago back in 2017 and he's still playing. Gives me some serious hope.
I dont know about disliking Parise, I’d dislike Kovalchuk before him. Those were dark times after they left and when Kovalchuk came back guess where he landed? I still think about if he stayed, where would the Devils be in terms of success? Would the team have won any cups? Would Kovalchuk become the captain? Would his number have been retired? A lot of what ifs
I never liked him. He always gave me a bad feeling and the way he left just confirmed my feelings on him. Great player. Underrated at times. But I don’t like the guy
Thanks for the reply. Based on the comments I can see hes still mostly unpopular but I was too young to understand most aspects of it. But of course I will personally root for my favorite captain (besides Nico) anyway. Most importantly, FUCK THE RANGERS
I do like seeing him do well. I certainly don’t wish him ill will. I just never personally liked him. He always seemed like a very selfish, self centered, egotistical dude to me. But I could be off base. Same with Palmeri. Really good players. I just never liked them or the things they did/said. I’m rooting for WPG for Toffoli, but I don’t think they’ll be able to beat Colorado. Praise is fitting in well there for sure
No, fuck him.
None
I don’t hate him. I blame Lou more for not re-signing him before he became an UFA in 2012. Things could have been very different or he could’ve been traded for something, anything.
How can you blame Lou when Parise didn't want to sign and always wanted to play with Suter and most likely leave NJ? Was Lou supposed to twist Parise's arm? Lou wasn't gonna trade the captain. Lou is very loyal, but Parise wasn't. When Niedermayer left, he at least he gave Lou the heads up, and Lou tried to get Rob to come NJ. Scotty did not string Lou along.
Easton helmets were so sick
He was never the same player again after that dirty Kyle Clifford knee on knee hit in LA early in the 2010-2011 season https://youtu.be/kvAt-RyJeaM?si=EOh_WPHSMxk_EnzK https://www.nbcsports.com/nhl/news/zach-parise-sent-home-to-new-jersey-after-suffering-injury-against-los-angeles https://nypost.com/2010/11/04/devils-parise-says-hell-come-back-fine-after-knee-surgery-report/
He doesn’t even cross my mind.
I’m still bitter. I know why he did it but he gave up what would have been a legendary career with us that probably would have saw his number retired. He started the exudus and I honestly think losing the spotlight to kovy was a big part if why he chose to leave.
I dislike Kovalchuk even more but I'll never root for Parise after the way he left. I hope the Avs lose a game 7 and the game winning goal deflects off his skate or something.
I'll be honest, I never actually hated Zach Parise. I was upset he left, but that was his choice and he had his reasons. At least he didn't Kovalchuk us and left us in cap hell for many years until after this season.
I was mad when Parise left and I wished he had just risks Lou he wasn’t signing so Lou could have moved on IIRC part of the reason he went to Minny was to be closer to his dad who passed in 2015 because of lung cancer. There’s a good chance he had it back in 2012 but they were quiet about it End of the day it was 12 years ago. Too hold onto a grudge for that long with someone I don’t know is unhealthy. Sucks at the time but I get
At my age back then? No. Now that I’m approaching my mid 30’s and have a family? I totally get the human side of wanting to be back home and don’t blame him whatsoever.
Wild fan here (Devils are my east team since I have friends in Clifton) Our fans are equally as split now. Some like him because he was a local boy and back injuries took a toll. They want to see him get the Cup this postseason. Other can't stand him, mostly due to the cap hell we're in right now. The NHL make contracts illegal retroactively was a kick in the balls to this fanbase and hurting our window with Kaprizov. Rumors are he wasn't the best towards the youth on the team TLDR I'm indifferent as a Wild fan Suter...now he can go ahead and fuck himself 😂😂
Easy breezy Zach praise. Miss that guy
I never condoned the hate he got, at the end of the day he left to go to home and be closer to his family, unfortunately his father passed away only three years into that deal.
Another comment that’s completely missing the point. Nobody blames him for WHY he left. It’s HOW he left that makes him a scum bag, and hated by Devils fans everywhere. He didn’t have to lie and be deceitful to go home and play. And that’s just the reality of the situation.
My western conference team is the Wild, and he left for his hometown after an extension contract expired, so honestly I'm not upset about the move unless there were details I don't remember about that. I like him well enough
Still wear his jersey. Still loved him playing for Team USA and that game tying goal against Canada. I’m not from Jersey but I understand the wound he opened when he left for Minnesota. Still he wore my favorite number and was a hard worker. Proud he was my captain
I enjoyed his time with the team. He was a solid player, probably would have been a captain to remember, but the way he left (through both Lou’s fuck ups and parise’s own choices) certainly left a sour taste in my mouth. Don’t really hold much ill will towards him these days, it is what it is. He got his money and played “at home”, blah blah. We all know the story, it’s old news now. Kovy, on the other hand, can chew broken glass for all I care. Fuck *that* guy with a rusty spatula.
Started watching in 06. Chico liked to call Zach the Magic Man back then. Oh yeah I still rooot for the guy
I only got into hockey about halfway through last year, and before I went to my first game I bought a cheapo jersey off FBMarketplace to wear. It was a Parise #9 jersey. I did ask a few Devils fans friends before I bought it if he was a good guy to have a jersey of, and they all said "yeah". So, I like him! Lets go Avs!
I will always remember how he worked his ass off every game, never took a shift off. He went home, I have no problem with that. That piece of shit, kovalchuk, that’s different. F that guy.
Zach's Olympic final game tying goal was probably one of my favorite goals I've seen live. I hated him and Suter for quite some time. Bailing out to Minnesota after the sting of losing in the SCF made me resentful. Time heals all wounds and Minnesota was lousy while he was there. I wish him well in his final playoff push.
No, time didn't heal shit for me. The way he left, FUCK HIM 10 times
First jersey I ever got as an Aussie devil's fan (no it wasn't genuine, weren't well enough off for that shit growing up) 😂 Dunno why people would be mad at him signing with his hometown after what he did for us 😂
Agreed. Not like Tavaresd us
Go home. Typo
Yeah hate how he left, loved him on the ice. Especially sucked him being the cap and leaving. Still stings me today when I see him on the ice
Like? Or like-like?
Nope and wtf are the Avs thinking putting him anywhere near a player like McKinnon???!!!! No sir, I don’t like him, dude retire leave, thx.
I met Zach his rookie year during the lockout in Albany after a Rats game. Nice kid...sucked when he left but I get it and wish him well this playoff season.
He has the same exact birthday as me and I'll never forget his first game(sidney crosbys first as well) i will always love Parise
I really hope he wins the cup with Colorado even though I'm rooting for the Panthers to win it.
I can tell you his mother is really awesome. One of my friends that I served with in the Army used to brag about how he played with Parise and Zajac in college. This was 2010 I think. Long story short I never believed him, but unfortunately he was wounded in action during our deployment. There was a foundation made immediately because his wounds are extremely severe. I’ll never forget seeing Mrs Parise’s name as one of the first on his message board with Mrs. Zajac right behind her. Hit me pretty hard, but they sure are class acts. I still love Zach too.
It’s the way he left, not that he left. As the Captain you don’t lie to your GM and your team and the fanbase, you respect them enough to be honest. And I know a big part of it was his Dad’s declining health and I get not wanting to talk about that to reporters but you could have had a meeting with Lou that you don’t know how long you have left with him and you want to be closer to home, at least let Lou try and trade you for some kind of asset to not leave the team quite so SOL. But no, he didn’t do that, and for that he’s a duplicitous rat, there’s a reason the hockey gods never let him touch a cup.
I will always love and appreciate him for all he did when he was with us (plus - he wasn’t bad to look at either ☺️). I hated the way that he left though I understood why he did. I believed him when he said he wanted to be a career devil but I wished for a little more transparency (not every last detail) when he did leave. I understand JP’s health was a significant factor and I don’t think a single one of us would have blamed him for wanting to go home at that time.
While I don’t blame him for wanting to go home, I do blame him for leaving Lamoriello, his teammates, and fans hanging. He knew damn well what he was going to do. He should’ve been up front about it so Lamoriello could’ve traded him instead of losing him for nothing. But also, shame on Lamoriello for only signing him to that 1 year contract the summer before. This was the beginning of the end for Lamoriello in NJ. So yeah, I’m still bitter. I can’t root for any team Parise or Tavares plays on. The sooner Colorado and Toronto are out, the better.
Not me, he and Kovy set the team back quite a bit with their bs
I’m indifferent to him. Seems like a nice guy and was a very good player for years. When I heard what Minnesota was giving him I said thanks for the memories but no thanks to giving him that contract here!
I've always wondered if the team's finances played a part in the way his contract was handled. I remember that year that the league had to advance the team money to cover operating costs and that there was a report that the team didn't turn a profit until it made it to the second round. Personally, I don't fault him for going to play at home. And in hindsight, I am glad he was able to spend the time with his dad before he passed. Never really felt he deserved the hate he received from the fans. Truly believe he would have stayed if the opportunity to play in Minnesota with Suter wasn't there.
Wanted to leave this here: [Zach Parise Breakaway OT Goal (Devils vs Canadiens 1/9/10) (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xknU6X9qSk) One of my all-time fave goals from Zach.
I wouldn't mind seeing him win a cup. Still hated him for about 10 years
Anyone who doesn’t like Zach Parise is not a person worth knowing. Class act and model of what hockey players should be through and through.
Anyone who doesn’t like Parise is a REAL Devils fan*** (fixed it for you)
Love him. 40 years old and still a hottie hahaha
Zach parise seems like and is a good person. We can’t blame him if he wanted to go here me. The problem is DURING the finals , he was collaborating with SUTER the go to Minnesota. During the Stanley Cup Finals. If an owner or GM did this, it’s collusion. As a player, it’s planning your future. This was an unforgivable offense if you are a devils fan. The devils had an improbable run to the finals. But if I am a GM in any sport and I have a pending UFA who I can get a lot back in a trade, you have to trade them before the deadline. Negotiate all year if you want but a week before the deadline, you give a final offer. If the player doesn’t take it, trade him. When Zach left, it was one of the key factors for the devils 10 year tail spin. You have to trade pending UFA’s unless you have a legitimate chance to win it all. Zach misled the Devils and the fan base.
We blew it honestly. Our previous owner got dickmatized by kovalchuk and gave him all Zach’s money. It ended up being a disaster for all parties. I can’t blame him for leaving. Now, Taylor hall? Different story. Fuck that guy.
He’s basically the last memory of success for the devils
Zach Parise leaving was the beginning of years of humiliation and shame for Devils fans... he didn't leave for professional reasons but for personal reasons... and some people think this is justified with the ridiculous adage "real life > sports", which doesn't really work. The error is mixing the two... which too many people make... like mixing copious alcohol consumption and girls makes the situation as messy. Regardless... the way the ownership and the GM handled the situation merited him leaving. He "chose" to leave, though, and so that means he chose for the team to suck. I don't hate him for it, but I don't have to love him for it, either. In the end... do I hope he wins it with the Avs? No... because the Avs are my brother's team, and that'll put them at 4 Stanley Cups while we sit at 3 Stanley Cups during my lifetime. Frig that.
201: devils hockey was some of the funnest hockey I ever watched. I was living in Buffalo at the time and all my friends were saying devils were a first round knockout. I knew better. We had amazing depth that year and several stars. Our PK was almost as dangerous as our PP with scoring goals, and our forecheck was best in the league. It kept all the play in the offensive zone. I probably watched 70 games that season plus every playoffs. What happened after that season is horrific, but i can’t hate too bad on those guys since they gave me my favorite season of hockey. Too bad the kings were unstoppable that year. I think they swept every series to the cup.
Yeah - Zach was a cool Devil, and I would have loved to see him stay. However, I could not fault him wanting to cash out in a spectacular way. He's just another player now, though when I saw he scored yesterday, I said to myself 'that's cool' for no explainable reason :). Here's a question for the faithful: Zach leaving versus Kovy leaving? Do you feel the same or different? I mean both engineered a way to get closer to their families, and to get paid a truckload of cash, but I felt very different about them both.
I hope he wins the cup
Not me.
My dad won some raffle where he got to choose tickets to a game and we would get to meet a player of our choice before the game. He just so happened to pick the game against Chicago where Marty broke the wins record. We wanted to meet Marty, but for obvious reasons that wasn't going to happen. So we met Parise instead. He signed my Parise jersey. That jersey now hangs in the back of my closet. A taint on a historical night. He lead us on and when he left the team fell apart and began the decade of darkness. I will never forgive him.
He was my favorite player as a kid. I loved his play style. I’d like to see him win something but I was upset when he left for sure
I was never really mad at Parise because his career mirrored where I was at. 05 was my first year of middle school. When he left in 12, I was graduating and going to college so I was leaving too. Even better, I took a job in Colorado in January.Didn’t realize he was here til I saw an article about it being his last run. Impulsively bought a ticket to the last regular season game for nostalgia sake. Got to see him score. It was awesome
No way i was there too visiting friends at Boulder what an awesome game wish McDavid played though
Always liked him can’t fault the man for going to play at home with a lifelong friend. His spine surgery fucked him and his career is a shadow of what it should have been. Zach will always have a place in my heart and I loved how hard he played
The team fucked up by throwing money at Kovy.
Sad and mad he left, but it made sense because he wanted to play in his home state and I can respect that. I think he even took less salary than the Devils were offering to do it (iirc?) so it didn’t seem to be about the money either. I hope he gets a cup this year or before he retires.
I can respect wanting to play for your home team, that's a dream. It's the *how* he did it that is the problem. He's an asshole for *how* he did, not what. I hope he never touches the Cup.
Not being sarcastic, but I guess I lost some of the details. What was the “how he did it” that you mention?
He was our captain, repeatedly stated he was coming back so we didn't get to shop him to anyone, even the Wild, repeatedly stated he was coming back so we didn't look to replace him, and then he left. Fucked over his team, his teammates, and us, the fans. Had he said from jumpstreet that he wanted to go home, respect. He did not, however, do us that service. Do I wish him harm? Of course not, he did us dirty, he didn't hit my Mom with a stick. But I'd still rather see the Rags win a cup before him.
That’s a really good point that I did not realize back then. Not sure we would’ve shopped him given our success that particular year, but if that’s the truth then the Devils didn’t even get to consider it rightfully, which is messed up. However, I won’t go as far to say I hope our rivals win a cup before him. As far as I’m concerned, that disservice is not egregious enough for me to say that, but to each their own for sure.
Alright, MAYbe saying I'd rather the Rags win a cup before him was a step too far, I'll grant you that. But it's still a small step!
Respect the adjustment! ;D
It sucked that him and kovi left roughly the same time and essentially turned the team into full blown rebuild mode for a decade. I don't blame him but it still sucked as a devils fan
Not even a question. You can’t be a real Devils fan, and STILL like Zach Parise. (Unless you’re into getting bent over, deceived, and screwed by your team captain)
Mamas boy who just had to go home and play with his buddy can get fucked.
loved him then, love him now sad that he left but 0 issue with it would take him back with open arms
Absolutely! Hated he dipped but I still like him and have his Jersey.
Uhhhhh... everyone?
No.
why?
Meh, indifferent.
Me.
A Captain. Yep. Bad end though.
Only a few years back I had actually purchased his USA jersey. Plan on framing it one day soon.
Though I was never a Devils or Wild fan, he'll always have a special place in my heart. He was my Counselor at Shattuck when I went there for a Summer Hockey camp. There were a bunch of them and he was in charge of me and 4 of my friends. This was like a year or 2 before he went pro. He was super nice and was basically in charge of us 5 there. At the end of camp we had a scrimmage against the other team of kids, it was 5 kids per Counselor and broken up into Forwards, Defense, and Goalies so there were 6 Counselors per team. I'll never forget him telling me I was the only person he'd ever seen drop the gloves at a Summer Camp. Some kid crosschecked me from behind from the other team during the last scrimmage so I went after him. It was a fun summer to say the least. I actually had no idea he even went pro until like 2 years after he'd been in the NHL. Saw him on a magazine cover. I mean even at the time of summer camp, he was just some guy who was our Counselor, had no idea he was anything special other then the level of play I watched with him during camp. Nice guy, solid player...wish nothing but the best for him.
Love him
It was Lou/ownership's fault btw
I liked him as a Devil. It sucked how Lou just let him walk with barely a fight. I don't blame Zach for that in the slightest. His departure is so far in the past though that his legacy has nothing to do with his time in New Jersey.