Zach Parise

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

I know that rookies don't often make the team but if NJ signs Parise next year I think he is an exception, Larionov will be retiring so there will be a center spot open. I don't see College helping his game anymore, I think he is well rounded enough to grab our #2 spot next year. He works hard, tough in corners, great playmaking abilities, goal scoring presence, a faceoff expert (so I heard), great defensive skills. The only thing I havn't heard he does is fight becasue there is no fighting in college hockey. I would hope by next year he could weigh in around 195 so he wouldn't get pushed around. Here is a list of his accompliushments.

HOBEY BAKER, ALL-AMERICA CANDIDATE

2002-03: Drafted by New Jersey in first round (17th overall) of NHL Entry Draft ... A 2003 Hobey Baker Finalist ... Only freshman among the 10 finalists and the first rookie finalist in school history ... Named to All-WCHA Third Team and All-WCHA Rookie Team ... Co-winner of UND?s Jeff Anderson Hockey Scholarship as team?s Most Valuable Player ... Also named team?s Rookie of the Year ... Named UND?s Male Rookie Athlete of the Year ... Led NCAA in rookie scoring with 1.56 points per game ... Finished eighth overall in national scoring race ... Finished second on UND in points (61), goals (26) and assists (35) ... His 61 points are the third-highest rookie total in school history ... His 35 assists are the sixth-best rookie total in UND history, while his 26 goals rank eighth and his eight power play goals rank seventh ... Led all WCHA freshmen in conference scoring at 1.23 points per game ... Four-time WCHA Rookie of the Week ... also named WCHA Offensive Player of the Week once (Oct. 14) ... IHCCA National Rookie of the Month for December ... Opened his collegiate career with eight points in two games at the Xerox College Hockey Showcase ... Scored three goals and an assist in his collegiate debut against Canisius (Oct. 11) ... Followed with two goals and two assists the next night against Michigan ... Went on to score 20 points in his first six games ... Second on team in faceoff percentage (57%) ... Had three hat tricks and 20 multi-point games ... Had an NCAA-best five assists at Princeton (Nov. 1) ... Had one five-point outing, three four-point outings, five three-point outings and 11 two-point outings ... Had six multi-goal games ... Had four points in WCHA playoff series against Denver ... Member of Team USA at the 2003 World Junior Championships in Halifax, Nova Scotia ... Led U.S. in scoring with eight points (4-4) in seven games ... Tied for seventh in the tournament scoring race ... His faceoff percentage of 61.54 was the sixth-best in the tournaey ... Received nine of 10 coaches votes for preseason WCHA Rookie of the Year ... Earned first letter.

Dany Heatley had 56 points in 38 games in his first college year, Parise had 61 in 39 games. I didn't even try and compare him to Paul Kariya, his numbers made me sick but you get the point. I was even wondering why Lou didn't try and sign him for this year. I would rather play him then Larionov, Rupp or Rasmussen.

[westcoastdevfan]

You are delusional. Rupp and Rsmussen are good Devil type players. Give the guys a chance before you discard them for an unproven college kid. Yeah, I am excited about Parise too, but give the kid a chance to mature a bit and hone his skills.

[Triumph]

Because you have no idea what development is about.

That's the only reason why you would want Parise in NJ right away.

[Zamode]

Lou would never go for that--he likes the young'uns to dry behind their ears first. He'll come around, he has good potential but ya can't rush a good thing. You still need experience.

[aylbert]

I wouldnt be as harsh as Tri; but you cant expect Parise to be ready... Only in systems like Atlanta would I expect Parise to play straight out of school... Devloping the mind will be valuable; especially if he buys into our system. Developing is key for the longterm.

[NJayDevil]

Let's wait until his senior year. I wouldn't want an 18 year old out there right now on this team, give him time to develop more and bulk up a tad more. No sense in rushing what could be our future #1 center.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

Tri, the guy is not going to get anymore development in College hockey. I know that Parise is better then those three players and would do better. I am willing to tyke bets that if signed next year he will be our #2 center. If guys like Brown, Horton, Stewart, and Burns are all getting long looks this year I will bet Parise will make it next year. Development is for players with weaknesses and I bet you can't name one on Parise, he is an all round player much like Modano.

[NJDevs4978]

JM, it's obvious to me that you look at the team through a one-dimensional prism, i.e. only looking to get as many spots for younger players as possible. Getting youth is all well and good but you can't overdo it, that's the balance you have to maintain between established veterans and inserting youth where each is prudent. Maybe you live near Albany and have a natural bias toward prospects from seeing the River Rats play I dunno; that's usually the case when someone's as gung-ho about playing the prospects as you are.

But the team is in good hands with Lou and Burns so I trust them to decide whether a player is or isn't ready.

[Derek21]

Don't be so hard on the kid. Just because he says things you don't agree with doesn't mean it's okay to take cheapshots .

I think Parise sounds great. Just from what little I saw of his interviews with the Rangers on Blueshirts Inside-Out, he has a lot of confidence in himself and seems to believe he's a leader. Based on that and the scouting reports, it sounds like the Devils got themselves a potential great player. And I happen to agree that Devil fans could be seeing Parise earlier than expected. If he tears up his second year, the Devils will sign him and he'll be competing for a roster spot next year. I wouldn't bet against him.

I think Lamoriello had a vision and saw this kid's maturity level as signs that he could be ready to fill a center void. And when Larionov retires, that opens up a spot. Most fans here seem to agree that Rupp isn't a franchise center. But he'll probably get a chance to play with Friesen and Langenbrunner from the sounds of it. Gomez is their most talented center on the roster but he still hasn't put it all together to be considered a #1 pivot. Maybe that changes this year.

I won't be shocked if Parise is a Devil next year.

Edited September 26, 2003 by Derek21

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

McGuire doesn't go nuts for many people but on draft day he was going crazy becasue Parise fell so low.

I am waiting for one person to tell me a weakness of Parise.

[Triumph]

<sigh>

Your lines for the team for this year would look like this, I imagine:

Elias-Gomez-Suglobov

Pihlman-Parise-Balmochynkh

Pandolfo-Madden-Gionta

Brylin-Rupp-Bicek

Stevens-Rafalski

Niedermayer-Bouwmeester

Hale-Martin

We'd trade all our excess talent for Bouwmeester, since he's the next Denis Potvin, and we'd go with that lineup this year. Hopefully we'd deal Stevens for Brad Stuart, since Stuart will be better than Stevens.

If Parise is like Modano, why was Parise drafted 17th and Modano 1st? Why are guys like Brown, Horton, Stewart, and Burns getting long looks? Because their teams suck, that's why. Florida has depth but no breadth, and Minnesota's roster is filled with dreck. Los Angeles, too.

What kind of insane Stanley Cup defending team has a just-drafted rookie as its 2nd line center? The HF logic just doesn't work. If Parise comes out next year, he could make the team out of camp, if there is a team to be made. But I imagine there won't be, and so Parise will start in the AHL, where he should start. There he will develop. There is absolutely no need to rush talent. The fundamental flaw in HF thinking is the thought that icing the most talented team is an imperative. But good teams never rely on rookies to go beyond their means. Good teams don't rely on 20-22 year old rookies, period. They will have rookies, and they will expect them to play well. But they will not expect them to play in accord with their ostensible or expected talent.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

Actually they would look more like this:

Frisen - Gomez - Langenbrunner

Elias - Parise - Marshall

Pandolfo - Madden - Gionta

Brylin - Rasmussen - Stevenson/Rupp

[Derek21]

If Parise is like Modano, why was Parise drafted 17th and Modano 1st?

Tri, ever heard of when Petr Sykora slipped to 18 and made the Devils right away??? Things like that can happen. It was obvious Parise fell for unexpected reasons. Just look at how the TSN broadcasters reacted when the Devils made the move to get him.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

[Triumph]

Sykora fell because they thought he would have injury troubles his whole career.

And in fact, it looked like for a time that might be the case, but it didn't turn out that way. Sykora has had a relatively injury-free career.

Parise fell because he lacks size. Size is another thing scouts obsess about, but Lou doesn't, maybe because he has a Napoleon complex.

Sykora had also played against PROS for at LEAST a year. So had Samsonov (who also fell) and he made the Bruins right away too.

The reason also why Burns, et al are getting looks is because the team might think the player will get more of a grounding in the defensive game by remaining on the NHL squad instead of going back to junior. If they could go to the AHL, they'd be there already.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

WTF are you a HF philosopher? You live inside a NJ world and the people outside don't want you to leave.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

Parise fell becasue of size, add 2 inches to him and he is top 5 talent and might go #1. Modano and Parise are almost identicle in styles just Parise is smaller by 4 inches.

[Derek21]

Tri, I agree with your reasons behind why Sykora and Parise slipped. In fact, it was known that scouts thought Sykkie was injury prone which scared teams away. I also thought he had an injury then. Not sure on that though.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

You act as if I said Suglobov, Pihlman ect were going to make the team, I only said to try them there as a possibility, you are just to narrow minded to try anything new. WE DON'T HAVE THE SAME TEAM AS LAST YEAR. Why try and ice an identicle roster when it is impossible.

I am still waiting for you to point out a flaw in Parise's game then i will stop.

[Jerrydevil]

This thread is asinine. How can people argue that Parise won't be in NJ next year, like it's some impossibility? If he's ready to play with the big boys, he'll be here, forget about where he was drafted. An assumption that Lou will want him to play AHL hockey is based on what? How many AHL games did Scott Gomez play?

[SpeakoftheDevil(s)]

I can see the board has some cagey vets and young prospects jockeying for position as well. Ahhhhh training camp, we all need it. Just a few short weeks and the season will be apon us. Now we cant afford injuries so play nice.

[Jas0nMacIsaac]

This thread is asinine. How can people argue that Parise won't be in NJ next year, like it's some impossibility? If he's ready to play with the big boys, he'll be here, forget about where he was drafted. An assumption that Lou will want him to play AHL hockey is based on what? How many AHL games did Scott Gomez play?

Thank you, I would also like to state that Parise's defense is 10 times the level Gomez's was and Parise is a more well rounded offensive weapon. Parise is also clutch.

[NJDevs4978]

This thread is asinine. How can people argue that Parise won't be in NJ next year, like it's some impossibility? If he's ready to play with the big boys, he'll be here, forget about where he was drafted. An assumption that Lou will want him to play AHL hockey is based on what? How many AHL games did Scott Gomez play?

Well Jerry, Gomez did benefit from a vaccum at center that enabled both him and Madden to get starting spots (although Gomez did play wing at times). And yes he did well enough with his opportunity. But other than Gomez and Nieds, every other Devil rookie has stayed in the AHL for some time. Parise might be one of those special cases, he might be with the Devils next year, if the team has a need at center (which they might) and he's ready (which he might well be).

I do think automatically wanting every young guy to play just because they're a prospect as JM does is an incorrect philosophy, though.

[insanity_gallops]

Easy on the attacks, fellas. Easy with those.

As far Parise becoming a Devil, I think it's impossible for someone to say definitively when he will or will not be joining the big team, unless that person is Lou, Conte, or some other development expert within the Devils organization that has Lou's ear. Even then it's all conjecture. Nobody knows what Lou is thinking with bringing Parise along, except that Lou seems to hold him in high regard.

Personally, I don't like the idea of a college sophomore-to-be dropping out of college to play in the NHL directly. I think he can still benefit greatly from the collegiate system; staying in school for at least another year or two will help him mature further, plus he will become a more well-rounded individual -- something we all know Lou looks for and admires in a player.

If he's as skilled as we all hope he is, he'll be a New Jersey Devil eventually... and that's enough for me.

[Triumph]

Jerry, if you re-read the thread, you'll see that no one actually argued that Parise will not make the squad next year.

I will continue to contend that if he does make the team, it is very likely to be in a reduced role. While he is probably the most talented player we have drafted since Gomez, Lou and coach still hate to bring rookies into top 6 positions right away.

Here's a flaw in Parise's game. He's 18. That's the flaw. If talent were the sole determinant of ability to play in the NHL, the AHL wouldn't exist anymore. I'm not even saying talent divorced from effort, or defensive ability. I am saying the AHL exists to develop talent.

I'm not narrow minded. In fact, I think I've fallen into that oft-discussed abyss of reactionary thinking. I will still continue to say, however, that players not used to ice time (since they are from Europe) should get it somewhere other than the NHL. You ask me to show a flaw in Parise, I ask you: when has Lou brought a player over from Europe that is not overage, and thrown him into the NHL?