The Colorado Avalanche and Zach Parise agreed to a contract recently. While the team won’t play until February now, they’ll still be able to get Parise onto the practice ice and get him going a little bit in preparation for the rest of the 2023-24 season.
So, how did this thing even come about? Well, two key Colorado Avalanche players had a huge say in the addition of Parise, who signed a one-year deal with the team.
#Avs Mikko Rantanen says Landeskog and MacKinnon were both involved in helping get Zach Parise to sign with Colorado pic.twitter.com/D3EzX11mI7
— Aarif Deen (@runwriteAarif) January 27, 2024
Obviously, Nathan MacKinnon has a big say in terms of potential additions. He’s the best player in the world and the Avalanche would be foolish not to have him chime in on guys that could benefit the team. Although Parise won’t be lining up on the same line as MacKinnon, it’s good to know that MacKinnon has an idea of the type of player that might be able to help them on a lower line.
Parise would likely see time on the third line—maybe the fourth line. We won’t officially see what Jared Bednar decides to do until the team gets back into action on February 5th.
As stated in the tweet above, Mikko Rantanen has also stated that Gabriel Landeskog—who is out this season (but could return for the playoffs)—also had a say in this signing. It’s amazing to see this being the case because it shows that Landeskog is still very much valued despite not being on the ice this season. His captaincy remains a big part of the team.
Parise is 39 years old and turns 40 later this year. I’m still a bit skeptical about how he will fit in with the team, but the good news is that he won’t be asked to be the best player on the Colorado Avalanche. Joining a new team mid-season is tough for anybody, but we’ll see how it goes. The endorsement made by Landeskog and MacKinnon bodes well for Parise, though.