Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: this_feature_currently_requires_accessing_site_using_safari
Originally Posted by Proshares
Very classy
ST. PAUL, Minn. — New Jersey Devils star Zach Parise's name has been at the tip of the tongues of Minnesota Wild fans for more than a year, in hopes that the Minnesota native would one day return home to be the electrifying scorer Minnesota has missed since Marian Gaborik left town.
As the July 1 start of free agency nears, the Parise watch has only intensified. Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher, unwilling to add any buzz to the speculation, simply deflects the questions as they come.
"It's been a runaway train, for sure, in the media everywhere and not just here," Fletcher said Thursday at his pre-draft press conference. "I think it just speaks to the parity in the league and how much competition there is. And, frankly, it's a year where a lot of teams have money to spend. I've looked. There's a lot of teams with a lot of money to spend. So I think my only statement would be it's probably a good year to be a free agent."
Parise, 27, is a five-time 30-plus goal scorer in six NHL seasons. He's been a playoff hero and has experience on the international stage. He's the pre-eminent goal scorer expected to be available in free agency, and Fletcher has said it's probably time for the Wild to get a "big fish" in free agency as the next step in the organization's development.
The fact that Parise hails from Bloomington and starred at Shattuck-St. Mary's in Faribault adds to the mystique. His dad, J.P., played for the Minnesota North Stars and Zach was born in Minnesota, while J.P. was an assistant coach.
New Jersey has 17 days left with exclusive negotiating rights, but if the two sides can't come to an agreement, Parise will enter July 1 as an unrestricted free agent, and the Wild are one of several teams rumored to be interested.
Fletcher doesn't need to stoke the flames when it comes to rumors about Parise. There are plenty of others willing to add fuel to the fire.
Lou Nanne, the former North Stars general manager, didn't do Minnesota's current GM any favors this week when he said the Wild's offer is "going to be so substantial that I cannot see Zach Parise turning it down." Speaking on the Dan Barreiro show locally on KFAN radio, Nanne said he had recently had dinner with Minnesota owner Craig Leipold.
"And what Craig told me, how hard he's going to go after him, and the kind of money that he's going after him, I don't see how Parise's not coming here," Nanne said. "I can tell you this, no one is going to outbid the Wild. So if Parise goes somewhere else, you can bet he's going for less money. And what I said, the kind of money that they're going to offer him, he might as well just come here, own the team in his later years and win the Stanley Cup as an owner."
Parise just missed a Stanley Cup this season with the Devils losing to the Los Angeles Kings in the Final. Parise capped a 31-goal, 38-assist regular season with eight goals and seven assists in 24 playoffs games.
Like Fletcher, Parise isn't interested in adding to the speculation. While clearing out his locker on Wednesday, he said he hoped to return to New Jersey. Parise wasn't going to be baited when asked if he would consider playing for New Jersey's rival, the New York Rangers, telling reporters, "No way."
"Don't try to get a headline out of this," Parise said.
Fletcher is cautious not to create headlines as well. There's enough speculation already. In Parise's case, with a lot of money and a lot of interested teams, does Fletcher feel the need to temper the fans' expectations?
"I try not to do anything to the fan base one way or the other," Fletcher said.
Fletcher doesn't need to when it comes to Parise. The fans know his game well. So does Nanne.
"He's a superb player," Nanne said on KFAN. "He's a player that comes to play with an attitude that's somewhat infectious. He gets other people to play better besides himself, imparting so much to a hockey club. He's the kind of guy you can count on every night. He's the kind of guy that's going to keep himself in condition and will play for a long time. He's the kind of guy that brings fans out of their seats. He excites them. He's got charisma. And he's the kind of guy you want to build a team around."
Just don't ask Fletcher if that's his plan.
Thanks. �Yeah I did, you would think these guys were from California wearing shorts and sandals�Originally Posted by frink85
awesome pics FB23!damn the crowd outside staples was deep...did you get to see the players pretty well?
A couple of factors:Originally Posted by cruzair13
Looking at that free agent list,
in Football and Basketball- players retire around 36-37 if they're lucky
Seeing Sellanne at age 41 and Ray Whitney at 40 being at the top of the list baffles me.
is skating more easy on the knees?
it's a physical game so don't their bodies take as much as a toll?
Originally Posted by WitnessMyCalm21
2012 NHL Awards | Tonight (6/20) | Begins @ 7pm EST | on NBC Sports Network
[h1]NHL Players Mock LeBron James’ Leg Cramps Via Twitter During Game 4 Of NBA Finals[/h1][h6]June 20, 2012 9:11 AM[/h6]http://boston.cbslocal.com/category/sports/bruins/
BOSTON (CBS) — There may be no tougher group of athletes on the planet than hockey players. They regularly block 90 mph shots without so much as grimacing, they are happy when a high stick causes them to bleed so that their teams will get extra power-play time, they lose teeth and don’t miss a shift, and they play through serious injuries in their quest for winning a Stanley Cup.
So when it comes to toughness, hockey players can’t really be questioned. And if they want to have a little fun at the expense of an NBA player being praised for playing through some leg cramps? Well, they’ve kind of earned that right, too.
That NBA player was LeBron James on Tuesday night. The Heat superstar went down in the fourth quarter with leg cramps. At first, he was able to stay in the game, hitting a one-handed bank shot before nailing a crucial 3-pointer minutes later. It wasn’t exactly a Willis Reed moment, but given that he’s the biggest basketball star on the planet, LeBron was receiving a healthy amount of praise for playing through the pain.
But color some NHL players unimpressed.
Thanks to the miracle of Twitter, we were able to see some of their thoughts as they were happening.
“Lebron James is embarrassing himself and the NBA or actually all athletes,
Originally Posted by True Blues
A couple of factors:Originally Posted by cruzair13
Looking at that free agent list,
in Football and Basketball- players retire around 36-37 if they're lucky
Seeing Sellanne at age 41 and Ray Whitney at 40 being at the top of the list baffles me.
is skating more easy on the knees?
it's a physical game so don't their bodies take as much as a toll?
1. Both are finesse players, and thus have absorbed less punishment relative to other players. Like goalies, this type of player tends to be able to extend their career for that reason.
2. GMs value a veteran voice in the room. Enormous commodity for teams looking to take a step-up, especially around the trade deadline.
3. Teemu still has some of the best hands in the league.
4. Whitney, like Recchi for example, is harder to explain. He's playing some of the best hockey his career despite his advanced age. Grit? Intelligence? Conditioning? I'm not sure. I guess that's why they call him The Wizard.
Nevertheless, guys like Selanne, Whitney, Brodeur, Roloson, Thomas and Jagr are outliers in terms of playing past 35.
Originally Posted by DeadsetAce
this is one of the many reasons that the NHL > NBA
[h1][/h1][h1]NHL Players Mock LeBron James’ Leg Cramps Via Twitter During Game 4 Of NBA Finals[/h1][h6]June 20, 2012 9:11 AM[/h6]http://boston.cbslocal.com/category/sports/bruins/
BOSTON (CBS) — There may be no tougher group of athletes on the planet than hockey players. They regularly block 90 mph shots without so much as grimacing, they are happy when a high stick causes them to bleed so that their teams will get extra power-play time, they lose teeth and don’t miss a shift, and they play through serious injuries in their quest for winning a Stanley Cup.
So when it comes to toughness, hockey players can’t really be questioned. And if they want to have a little fun at the expense of an NBA player being praised for playing through some leg cramps? Well, they’ve kind of earned that right, too.
That NBA player was LeBron James on Tuesday night. The Heat superstar went down in the fourth quarter with leg cramps. At first, he was able to stay in the game, hitting a one-handed bank shot before nailing a crucial 3-pointer minutes later. It wasn’t exactly a Willis Reed moment, but given that he’s the biggest basketball star on the planet, LeBron was receiving a healthy amount of praise for playing through the pain.
But color some NHL players unimpressed.
Thanks to the miracle of Twitter, we were able to see some of their thoughts as they were happening.
“Lebron James is embarrassing himself and the NBA or actually all athletes,
Originally Posted by FrenchBlue23
Originally Posted by WitnessMyCalm21
2012 NHL Awards | Tonight (6/20) | Begins @ 7pm EST | on NBC Sports Network
I set the DVR for this. The only year I'm interested in watching this, wonder why
Originally Posted by GUNNA GET IT
are you Rangers fans comfortable with this team playing without a healthy Gabby til around February/early March?