Zach Parise is back in the NHL.
The 39-year-old veteran of 1224 games has inked a one-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche, the club announced Friday, months after going unsigned ahead of this season.
Parise had spent the last two years with the New York Islanders, where he was more than successful scoring 36 goals and 69 points in 164 games, never missing one match over that time. He showed last year he still has some jump, scoring 21 goals while averaging 16:09 in ice time per game.
“We are excited to add Zach to our group,” said Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland in a statement. “Over his impressive NHL career, Zach has always been a highly competitive and driven forward who is hard to play against. We look forward to adding his veteran presence to our locker room.”
Drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the 1st round of the 2003 draft, Parise spent the first seven years of his career out east, before signing as a free agent with the Minnesota Wild in 2012. He inked a mammoth 13-year deal that paid him $7.538-million a year, but that deal was bought out ahead of the 2021-22 season.
Gallagher suspended
The Montreal Canadiens will be without winger Brendan Gallagher for the next five games thanks to a suspensions handed down by the league Friday.
That’s due to Gallagher’s vicious hit to the head of New York Islanders defenceman Adam Pelech Thursday night. In the third period, Gallagher, who is in his 12th NHL season, caught the rearguard in the head with an elbow, and due to the All-Star break, won’t play again until February 15th.
He was assessed a match penalty on the play, and the Habs went on to win the game 4-3. Throughout his career, Gallagher teetered the line of illegal plays, having never been previously suspended, and only was fined once back in Nov. 2021 for sucker punching Barclay Goodrow.
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