On one hand you have the American kid who has been a Devil for years, but always talking about how filled up Prudential Center is, how the fans react to the play, how "sick" other star players are and taking no personal responsibility, blaming a team that "could have won many times" for never getting past the first round. He whines like a little baby, especially when he walked away from the media in the playoffs bc he was cranky. And IMO he acted like he didn't want the "C" the whole year. He didn't act like he had any more leadership responsibility than the next guy. Yet, we can all see how much Parise wants to be seen as a Superstar.
On the other you have the adult, the Russian who played for years in sh!t. The one who only shows his fire on the ice. The one who in a perfect situation was perfectly justified leaving Atlanta, being that they were horribly run and gave him the big money deal. He came to the Devils and appreciated what they were about. He wanted to be a Devil. He took personal responsibility and redefined his game for the team. He never said one negative thing either through sucking. He stuck with it. We boo'd him. But he never said anything. Actually, we put all the blame on him - so much that it wasn't even fair. We only blamed him and he didn't react - he responded. What would Parise have done - he would have blamed the whole team and whined. But I digress, then Kovy comes out and has an MVP season this year and he doesn't talk about it once. He just says, "I should have scored more" or "Marty played great." Kovy never says sh!t but "I want to win" in interviews.
Fittingly, Parise has abdicated the Devils Captaincy. After all, the spoiled brat can't fill Scott Stevens's skates. He left, for money and to play with his friends. He'll have a sold out stadium every night and he'll be all over the media. But don't give me this "I want to win BS." You sucked in the last 2 rounds of the playoffs buddy. Did I even hear Parise once say that he needed to produce more since he's returned from injury? NO. But Kovy has.
AS A MATTER OF FACT, I feel a lot better than I did before about not winning the Cup now. I don't want to have won with the wrong guy holding the "C". That lightens my devastation just a bit.
Meanwhile Kovy has done everything right. He wants to be a Devil, he lifts his teammates up, he appreciates what he has. It is so symbolic that he Chose NJ over Hollywood. Sure they are winners and we are the losers, but he chose Jersey over the glitz and glamour of LA. Parise has always had it all - he takes it for granted. Being a Devil is not about just playing good D. Parise is better than Kovy at that. Its about doing whatever it takes for the team to succeed. And Kovy has much more potential for that.
So, we all know I'm biased bc I see things through Kovy shades but it's time to give Kovy the "C" and be a real Devils team again. No more leaders who were taught by Jamie Langenbrunner. Kovy, to me is the offensive Scott Stevens. He is an offensive game-changer and a silent leader, who will do anything for his teammates. Parise, was (admittedly) a Jamie-type guy: whine about this not being right, whine about that not being right.
So, losing Parise to me is the moment for me that says we can go back to being the Devils I know. We don't need another forward, we have plenty. We should sign someone but it doesn't need to be anyone of Parise level. Henrique who seems like a real Devil through and through will be a star soon anyways. We need to sign a monster D-Man in the next year and we will be a dominant team.
There was always something wrong in my mind with Parise having the "C" when I knew it should be Kovy...we ALL know it - we just didn't want to say it. As a matter of fact, we ALL know the truths of this post, but as loyal Devils fans we just didn't want to say it. Well now we can.
This is so 2012 in the material world. Zach want his face on game covers and cereal boxes. He wants sold out arenas and fame. He wants to play in Minny where he won't go to the supermarket in anonymity. He wants to be known - after all it's the pop culture he grew up in. He wants to have fun.
Kovy came to New Jersey in the 2012 world. No glitz no glamour. Just a tradition of winning and team play. And he chose to play his whole career here.
Get the fvck out of here Zach, don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. Go have the fun career that you want, with all the accolades. After all, Minnesota is a great hckey town, you'll get to play with your boyfriend, your parents will cheer you from the stands, and you'll get paid way more than you deserve. And there probably won't be a pesky "C" to bother you. Thanks for your service here, I mean it - but seriously get the fvck out, we got our guy and his name is Ilya.
#THISISTEAM
Edited by ben00rs, 04 July 2012 - 12:56 PM.
