In a perfect world, the New Jersey Devils would have signed Zach Parise. He wouldn't have gone home to Minnesota and accepted the huge contract. He would have returned to New Jersey to finish what the team couldn't complete last season.
But fate was not on New Jersey's side, and the Devils are now left with a gaping hole in their offense that needs to be replaced. The losses of Parise, Alexei Ponikarovsky (FA, Winnipeg) and potentially Petr Sykora (FA, still unsigned) will cost New Jersey 66 goals from last season.
According to Cap Geek, the Devils still have $16 million in cap space to find a solution to their offensive woes. Defensemen Mark Fayne could win an increased salary in arbitration, but if they pay him and Sykora over the next few weeks, they will still have roughly $15 million to work with (NJ.com).
The rumors about who the Devils will replace Zach Parise with have been swirling, ranging from signing former Washington Capitals forward Alexander Semin or trading with the Anaheim Ducks for New Jersey native Bobby Ryan (NJ.com).
Star Ledger reporter Rich Chere also suggested that New Jersey bring back former Devil and current Mon ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Joseph Kuchie
NHL Free Agency: Who Will the New Jersey Devils Replace Zach Parise With?
July 7th, 2012 by Joseph Kuchie Leave a reply »
Advertisement