Devils in Race against time to lock up Team Captain Zach Parise

It is a little over 48 hours before the National Hockey League Free Agency period begins and the Devils are yet to lock up and re-sign Captain Zach Parise to a new long-term deal. General Manager Lou Lamoriello and Zach Parise and his agents Wade Arnott and Don Meehan have confirmed that they began contract negotiations, but left it at that and did not say anything further. There is a growing sense that Parise will test the free agent market as he told the Newark Star Ledger and the North Jersey Record that his agents have done a great job preparing him for July 1st and that even if he reaches July 1st, the Devils are still going to be in the hunt.

Many Devils fans have a huge feeling of pessimism and a bit of optimism at the same time in terms of what happens with him and the team. Ironically, Parise is getting married on Sunday, so we might not know his decision until later in the evening or it might wait til Monday or Tuesday. Devils fans prefer he make his decision on Sunday obviously so they can move on. One way or another, there is no way of knowing how much Parise is asking for and maybe his agents will purposely until July 1 until deciding his market value. Sidney Crosby agreed to a 12 year/$104.4 million dollar deal with the Penguins yesterday with an annual cap hit of $8.7 Million Dollars. Now, that is way too much for Parise obviously, but it does sort off drive his price up a bit more. So, do not be surprised if a team offers him a $8 Million Dollar cap hit.

The Devils however might only be prepared to offer in the neighborhood of $6.8 Million to about $7.5 Million dollars in terms of a cap hit, but it might be severely front-loaded contract. Let's not forget what happened in Summer 2010, when the Devils went through a whole Summer with the Kovalchuk saga, so they have to be very careful in this negotiation. In Summer 2006, Patrik Elias also tested the market on July 1 along with Langenbrunner, but both ended up staying. Now, that is very likely to be the case with Zach Parise, but it will be a very tough process, much tougher than with Elias and Langenbrunner.

So, which teams might have interest in Parise besides the Devils? Well, it is very likely that Parise might join Crosby and Malkin with division rival Pittsburgh Penguins, who cleared space at the Draft by trading Jordan Staal and Zbynek Michalek. He has said, he has no plans to join the Devils most hated rival the NY Rangers, but that can all change in a NY Minute. Another hated division rival, the Philadelphia Flyers are also in on it, but indications are that Parise wants to sign out West if he leaves the Devils. I'd say the top 3 are the Det Red Wings, hometown Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators. There are indications that Parise wants to team up with good friend Ryan Suter on some team. But anyhow, we shall see. Stay tuned for what could be them most tilting Summer in New Jersey Devils history. 

Will Zach Parise be a huge loss for the Devils? What will the Devils do if he leaves?

There continues to be huge speculation that the Devils financial problems will affect the way Lou does business and his chances of re-signing Team Captain Zach Parise. However, the way I think of it, ownership issues or no ownership issues, it will have no bearing on his decision and he will keep his options open. The Phoenix Coyotes have had ownership issues and yet they managed to make the playoffs and make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals this past year. That could be a factor in Parise ultimately deciding to stay put in New Jersey on a long-term basis.

The Devils last Summer signed Parise, who was a Restricted Free Agent only to a 1 year contract worth $6 million dollars just so they can avoid the "dreadful arbitration process." Arbitration usually hurts the relationship between a player agent and the team management. The Devils elected to take Parise to team arbitration, but avoided the whole process. Based on Parise's body language, he was not too thrilled about the Devils even electing to go to arbitration with him, despite avoiding it and his agents Wade Arnott, Don Meehan and Pat Morris were not to thrilled either.

Parise is represented by the Newport Sports Agency, which represents high profile clients such as Steven Stamkos, Brad Richards, Ilya Bryzgalov, Drew Doughty, Mike Green, Dan Hamhuis, Jarome Iginla, Evander Kane, Wade Redden (Got his Money) among others. Last Summer they accounted for very high contracts for Brad Richards, Ilya Bryzgalov, Steven Stamkos and Drew Doughty. The most notable were Brad Richards and Ilya Bryzgalov, who took 9 year deals worth $60 million and $50 million respectively with the Rangers and Flyers. So, they would almost certainly like for Zach Parise to test the free agent market and waters.

I think Parise will stay eventually, but it will be a very tough and dreadful process with his agency. But, now the question. Will he be a huge loss and what do the Devils do next? In my opinion, Parise will be a huge loss in the short term, meaning the Devils will likely have to take a step back for about 2-3 years. They would still be a playoff team, but it will be very tough for them to win the cup or maybe even get past Round 1. I do not expect Lamoriello to pursue any Unrestricted Free Agents, but he might try to make a trade. The Free Agent Class  this Summer appears to be very weak., so expect the Devils to experiment with a few rookies and prospects and players from the AHL which are ready to turn pro. If that does not work out, he will most certainly seek a trade.

But, bottom line is that Parise's decision will come down to winning and stability in goal. The Devils will have Marty Brodeur back in net next season and maybe very likely the following year. Is that stability? It is int he short-term. Parise might want assurances from Lou Lamoriello that he will sign or develop a capable successor to Marty that can take over and succeed. Will the current Stanley Cup Final appearance help the Devils chances? In my mind, I think it helps the Devils chances, but in Parise's mind, there could be a huge gap between winning the Stanley Cup and going to the Final and losing it. The Devils do have a winning pedigree and an outstanding coaching staff and DeBoer is likely here to stay for a very long time. That could be another factor in his decision. Is him being named captain a selling point for him staying in NJ? He will most certainly consider this as a Pro, not a Con.  But, I guess we shall see, but it is not the end of the world should the Devils lose Zach Parise as he might only have 2-3 good years left in him. Plus his playoff production has not been as great as we wanted and come to expect from him. 

Devils Projected 2012-2013 Roster

Well, let's forget all the questions and uncertainties the Devils will have this Summer in 2012, here is an early look at what they could look like in 2012-2013.

With all potential UFA's back (minus Sykora, Harrold and Salvador):

Zach Parise - Travis Zajac - Ilya Kovalchuk
Patrik Elias - Adam Henrique - Dainius Zubrus
Alexei Ponikarovsky - Jacob Josefson - David Clarkson
Ryan Carter - Stephen Gionta - Steve Bernier
Extras: Eric Boulton, Mattias Tedenby, Vladimir Zharkov

Andy Greene - Mark Fayne
Henrik Tallinder - Marek Zidlicky
Anton Volchenkov - Adam Larsson
Extras: Jon Merrill, Eric Gelinas

No Parise, but most of other UFA's back:

Ilya Kovalchuk - Travis Zajac - Dainius Zubrus
Patrik Elias - Jacob Josefson - David Clarkson
Alexei Ponikarovsky - Adam Henrique - Mattias Tedenby
Ryan Carter - Stephen Gionta - Steve Bernier


Andy Greene - Mark Fayne
Henrik Tallinder - Marek Zidlicky
Bryce Salvador - Anton Volchenkov
Extras: Jon Merrill, Eric Gelinas, Adam Larsson

Notes: Devils will keep their 2012 First Round Pick in next Friday's NHL Entry Draft in Pittsburgh. They will have to forfeit it in 2013 or 2014.

Devils take huge step forward, but now enter Summer of Uncertainty after losing Stanley Cup Finals

After missing the playoffs during the 2010-2011 season, the New Jersey Devils proved many skeptics wrong this past season by making it to the Stanley Cup Finals as a 6th seed, taking out the Philadelphia Flyers and the top seeded New York Rangers en route. However, they ran into a wall known as Jonathan Quick, who won the Conn Smythe for playoff MVP for the Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings. The Kings became the 1st 8th seed to win the Cup in NHL history. So, now there are many questions facing the Devils and here they are:

What is the future of Zach Parise with the Devils?


This will be the most important question of the Summer for the New Jersey Devils. Parise was mum and silent after Monday's series loss against the Kings and would not even discuss or give any hints about his future. The Devils will make every single effort to lock him up long-term, but he will have a very huge market that will attract him during free agency. In fact all 29 other teams will be heavily interested in him. Also, the Devils have an uncertain financial situation, a cloud that was hanging over them all year long, but it seems as if its close to getting resolved and it could be very good news for the teams affordability to keep Parise a Devil. After all, he is the Team Captain and it would not be right for him to leave after one year. I say, if Parise goes unsigned by the time free agency starts, chances of him staying in NJ are slim.

What will happen with Martin Brodeur?


This will be priority #2 for Devils, but he made it known he will return to Devils, but at what cost. That remains to be seen.

What will the Devils do with their own free agents?


The Devils have many key unrestricted free agents other than Parise and Brodeur. Fayne and Taormina are the only restricted ones, so they will likely be back. But, here are some of the key Unrestricted Free Agents:

-Ryan Carter: (Stays)
-Stephen Gionta (Stays)
-Steve Bernier (Stays)
-Cam Janssen (Leaves)
-Peter Harrold (Leaves)
-Alexei Ponikarovsky (Leaves)
-Bryce Salvador (Try and re-sign him, but might be too pricey for Devils)

What will happen to Larry Robinson, Dave Barr and Adam Oates?


The Devils biggest weakness in 2010-2011 became their biggest strength in 2011-2012. Their coaching staff did a great job and my guess is that Larry Robinson will likely step down and Adam Oates will stay, but he will get interviewed by the Washington Capitals for their Head Coaching job, where he once played and was very popular. Dave Barr will obviously stay on to continue to develop and re-develop their strong penalty kill.

Will Adam Larsson and Adam Henrique have success in their sophomore seasons?


Adam Henrique is up for the Calder Trophy or Rookie of the Year. But most players do go through sophomore slumps, I think Henrique will battle some bumps next season, but I think he will be very productive as well. Larsson had a tough rookie campaign, but I think he will be a force with the Devils in his 2nd season.

Who will the Devils back-up or future starter be in goal?


There is no question the Devils have to start grooming and playing the successor to future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur this next season or the next. It seems very unlikely, though its possible that Johan Hedberg returns, but he might play in NHL or maybe Sweden or Russia next season. The two most qualified Devils goaltending prospects to come up are Keith Kinkaid,w ho spent this past year in Albany (AHL) and Scott Wedgewood, who plays for the Plymouth Whalers in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Maxime Clermont and Jeff Frazee are not ready. The Devils might choose to go outside the organization for someone like Anders Lindback of Nashville or Josh Harding of Minnesota or even a Jonathan Bernier of the Cup Champion Kings, but that will be a late summer question for Devils to answer.

Which young players are ready to make the Jump to the NHL?


Lets start with Mattias Tedenby, who had a rough year, but I think he will be on the team next season, but needs to improve his hockey sense and smarts in order to be effective. On defense it seems likely that Eric Gelinas will be ready to make the jump. Jon Merrill, another top defensive prospect is likely staying at the University of Michigan, but if he were to sign with Devils, he would make a huge case for the opening night line-up.

How will the CBA uncertainty impact the Devils and NHL?


My guess is that it will have a small impact, but not a huge one. Teams have to go about their business fromt he expiring Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) as all contracts and personnel decisions will likely be grandfathered into the new CBA.