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| English: Zach Parise (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Sid Hartman, Star Tribune --- Lou Nanne, whom I describe as Mr. Hockey in this state, has been a close friend of J.P. Parise (Zach's father and a former Minnesota North Star) for a long, long time, and he has been a confidant of young Parise since the young man hung around local NHL teams.
Nanne is convinced that the Wild would have a good chance of signing Parise if New Jersey is fortunate enough to win the Stanley Cup -- they have a 3-2 lead on the Rangers in the Eastern Conference finals.
Parise has been great for New Jersey in the playoffs, with 14 points in 17 games on seven goals and seven assists.
"If Jersey does win, it could really benefit the Wild because Zach Parise is a free agent and he wants to win a Cup," Nanne said. "It might be tough for him to come here right away, but if he wins a Cup in New Jersey then that goal has already been met and then it might be really reasonable for him to come to the Wild as a free agent."
Nanne said Parise hasn't ruled out signing with anyone.
Michael Russo; Star Tribune ---Despite Mikko Koivu's attempt to persuade him to play for the Wild next season, highly touted 19-year-old Mikael Granlund will remain in Finland another year, one of his representatives said Thursday.
"The game plan is he's going to be entering the army and fulfilling his service and finishing high school, and we'd come over a year from now," agent Todd Diamond said.
"Mikael prefers when he comes over to Minnesota, hockey is the only thing he needs to focus on in his life. He wants to get all these so-called housekeeping things out of the way and, a year from now, get ready to hopefully crack the lineup."
Diamond said Granlund has received permission from the Finnish Army to attend the Wild's July 10-17 development camp. Diamond said the plan is to sign "this time next year."
"We believe Minnesota is a really good spot for him and the right environment for him to succeed in the future. It's the Finland of the United States in some ways," Diamond said.
Granlund, the Wild's first-round draft pick in 2010, helped lead HIFK to an SM-Liiga championship, then Finland to a world championship.
Yes, Koivu has a larger cap hit than Pavel Datsyuk, Nicklas Backstrom, Jonathan Toews and Henrik Sedin. Yes, his stats may not necessarily define him as a “superstar” type player but, then again, neither have Toews’.While I am a Wild fan I think that Jonathan Toews has a bigger upside than Koivu. If I was the general manager of the Minnesota Wild and had a chance to either have Koivu or Toews on my team I would take the younger Toews.
In fact, Koivu has put up better numbers than Toews over the last few seasons with less talent surrounding him—something that likely was at the forefront of these discussions when comparables were involved.
What Koivu brings to the squad, however, is so much more than just numbers-based value.
The fact of the matter is that the Wild would be lost without their captain. Koivu is the cornerstone of their team at even strength, on the penalty kill and on the powerplay.
The Wild’s offense not only runs through Koivu, but their forecheck and backcheck does as well.[Wild Nation]
Captain Mikko Koivu signed a US$47.25 million, seven-year contract extension Thursday, keeping the versatile centre with the team through the 2017-18 season.
"You could argue quite persuasively that he's the best player to ever play for the Minnesota Wild," said general manager Chuck Fletcher, who watched the organization's original first-round draft pick, sniper Marian Gaborik, leave for riches and the New York Rangers as a free agent last summer.
The Wild weren't about to let Koivu get that far, and the 27-year-old Finn was quite happy to stay with the team that took him in the first round in 2001, one draft after Gaborik.
Fletcher went so far as to call this deal a "monumental signing" and an "historic day" for the franchise. Koivu, picked as the Wild's first permanent captain last October, had 22 goals and 49 assists last season. In addition to being a leader in the locker-room, Koivu is arguably their best offensive player and best defensive forward. [TSN.CA]
