Parise and Suter Join Minnesota Wild

#PariseWatch and #SuterWatch are over.  Americans Zach Parise and Ryan Suter have signed with the Minnesota Wild.  They both signed to 13 year, $98M contracts today.

The dynamic left-wing Parise and premier offensive defenseman Suter are both 27 years old and have the best days of their NHL careers ahead of them.  I had a hunch that Parise would end up signing with his hometown team in Minnesota, but I honestly did not see Suter following him there.  Both players bring a dynamic offensive game, playoff experience and locker-room presence to the club. Last season the Wild started off strong but could not keep it together after December.


These two additions will undoubtedly make the Minnesota Wild a playoff bound team next season.

Congratulations to the Minnesota franchise and Parise and Suter.  Minnesota will have one of the most, if not the most, highest powered offenses next year.

I will have blogs regarding other big free agent signings including Jaromir Jagr and Jason Garrison in the near future. Follow me on twitter @bearbluni for NHL signing news and updates.

Devil in the Wild, the Zach Parise Saga

We all know that Zach Parise will be the hottest free-agent commodity during this offseason.  Rick Nash is great and all, but Zach Parise is a more dynamic superstar in my opinion.  The left-wing captain of the Devils has led his team to the playoffs in each year he has played a full season for them.  He’s a guy who can consistently put up 35G/45A/80P a season when he’s healthy.  He also has outstanding leadership ability as shown by his tremendous effort in the 2012 playoff run, in which he led the Devils to the Cup Final. 

It was reported earlier today by the St. Paul Sun Pioneer Press that the Wild would be making a 13 year $117 million contract.  This could potentially lock Parise up in the kind of long-term contract that he has longed for.  It could also give Parise the potential to play in front of his home crowd.  He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and played college hockey for the University of North Dakota.  Parise is undoubtedly a superstar that could completely reshape the Wild organization.  The Wild showed signs of hope this year, and with signings of Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi last year they could very well be Stanley Cup contenders with Parise on board. 

The Wild's top 6 forwards are wildly effective

Parise also brings a lot of leadership on and off the ice as well.  He’s the complete package.  He can play a great 2-way game and lead a team to the Stanley Cup.  The addition of Parise would make a scary first 6 forwards even scarier.  Could you imagine a Parise/Koivu/Setoguchi line? 

The only potential problem with signing Parise would be having room to sign rising stars like the Finnish junior superstar, Mikael Granlund.  A 7.5-9 million cap hit could limit the Wild’s ability to reform the team in the future. 

Only time will tell whether or not Parise bites down on this deal.  If he does, there is no doubt in my mind that the Minnesota Wild will be a Stanley Cup contending franchise next season.