The New Jersey Devils have many elite players, making picking someone at the #10 spot very difficult.
Some arguments support Scott Gomez at the #10 spot since he won two Stanley Cups with the Devils in 2000 and 2003. However, some counterarguments say he was a secondary player on a stacked lineup.
After talking with my co-editor Kirsty Flannery, it was decided that Zach Parise should be ranked at #10. So with that, let’s talk about it.
Parise was a Devils’ first-round pick in 2003 and started his career in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Albany Devils due to the lockout in 2004-05, before making the NHL in 2005-06.
Parise was a highly touted prospect that the Devils picked at 17 in the first round, and that showed in his first few years in the NHL. In his first season, he scored 32 points in 81 games, but in his second season, he showed what he was truly capable of. He scored 62 points in 82, followed by 65 in 81 games in his third season.
Parise’s career high in points came in his fourth season when he scored 94 points in 82 games. He was also named team MVP in back-to-back seasons (2008-09 & 2009-10).
In 2011, he was named the second captain in franchise history as Devils’ legend Scott Stevens. He would go on to lead that team to the Stanley Cup Finals against the Los Angeles Kings. In the Finals, while down 3-0, the Devils tried to force a comeback but ultimately lost in six games.
Unfortunately, during free agency in 2012, Parise opted to leave the Devils and sign with his hometown Minnesota Wild. Regardless of how it ended with him and the organization, he still deserves to be ranked in the top 10 best Devils of all time.
Source Agencies
