Zach Parise again says he wants to stay with the Devils - SportingNews.com

Zach Parise’s future with the New Jersey Devils will be a subject that gains more traction as the season continues.

However, Parise’s position has not changed: the unrestricted free-agent-to-be would like to stay in New Jersey.

Zach Parise would like to stay with the New Jersey Devils past this season. (AP Photo)

“I’ve said before, I’ve always liked to play in New Jersey,” he said. “I want to stay here and nothing has changed.”

Parise said talks on a new contract with the Devils have not begun. Before the season, Parise agreed to a one-year, $6 million deal to avoid arbitration.

“I’m not surprised” that negotiations haven’t started, Parise said. “I know how this organization has always done things and I understand how it can be a distraction for players at this time of year.”

In a Wall Street Journal article published last week, Parise’s father, J.P., said of his son’s upcoming free agency: “If you go back to the first part of the year, he would have gotten out of there in a minute.”

Zach Parise responded to that comment Tuesday in Calgary, where the Devils are playing the Flames. He said his dad apologized for the comment and that “I never said anything like that. I think something got mixed up.”

Parise said that if he does reach unrestricted free agency, he will look for a team that can consistently make the playoffs and compete for the Stanley Cup. The Devils do fit that bill.

A year after playing in only 13 games because of knee surgery, Parise has played in all 41 of the Devils’ games this season, entering Tuesday. He has 14 goals and 21 assists for 35 points.