By Eric Bordin
The NHL has lost a good one today. J.P. Parise has died from lung cancer at the age of 73.
Jean-Paul Joseph-Louis (J.P.) Parise was born December 11, 1941 in Smooth Rock Falls, ON. He was signed by the Boston Bruins after a scout sitting in the stands saw him score four goals and have two assists in a men’s league. He eventually made it to the big club in 1966, where he played a total of 21games over two seasons, scoring four points.
He would later be selected by Oakland in the 1967 expansion draft. He was traded to Toronto before he ever played for Oakland. He would play just one NHL game for the Leafs before being dealt to the Minnesota North Stars two seasons later.
Parise would become a star in Minnesota. He played for eight seasons with the North Stars, and was named to the NHL All-Star team twice. His best season came 1972-73, when he scored 27 goals and had 75 points.
His biggest contribution was arguably yet to come. When Parise was 34, Minnesota believed he was on the downside of his career and dealt him to the young, upstart Islanders for Doug Rombough and Ernie Hicke.
In 1975, the Islanders were the new kid in town. They were a bunch of guys from a suburb of NYC who were two years removed from the worst record in NHL history. But, all of a sudden they were playoff bound for the first time, having wound up with the same amount of points (88) that there NYC brethren had achieved.
They would take on those same NY Rangers in the first round of the playoffs. Back then, the first round was a best-of-three. The Rangers had home ice advantage by virtue of more wins. So, with the series tied at one game a piece, and the score tied at three, this happened:
1975 wound up being a very special year for the New York Islanders. It may not have happened at all if it were not for J.P. Parise. He wound up scoring 16 points in 17 playoff games for the Isles. He was second only to former North Stars teammate, Jude Drouin, who was acquired from Minnesota in a separate deal. Until recently, this Islanders team was the last franchise to come back from a 3-0 hole in playoff series. They not only did it once, but almost did it again, finally falling to the Flyers in seven games.
JP would play two plus more seasons on the Island, adding 18 more points in 24 more playoff games.
Parise will always hold a special place in the hearts and minds of Islanders fans; not only for his 1975 playoff heroics, but for the haul he got the Isles when he was traded to the Cleveland Barons midway through the 1978 season. The Isles sent Parise and Jean Potvin to Cleveland for Wayne Merrick, Darcy Regier, and Cleveland’s fourth-round pick in the 1978 NHL Entry Draft. The biggest piece in this deal was Wayne Merrick who would have 46 total points in 95 playoff games for the Isles.
Even though the Islanders missed out on a great talent in JP’s son Zach Parise, the whole Parise family is in the thoughts of Islanders fans everywhere today.
Rest easy, J.P., you will be missed.
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