Parise plans to attend Wild training camp, honor rest of contract

Zach Parise said he plans on attending training camp for the Minnesota Wild next season even though his future remains unclear.

Parise said he will speak with Wild general manager Bill Guerin and coach Dean Evason during the offseason. The 36-year-old forward has four seasons left on a 13-year, $98 million contract ($7.54 million average annual value) he signed with Minnesota on July 4, 2012. 

“You never sign a deal and not fully intend on seeing it through,” Parise said Tuesday. “I understand things change, but from my standpoint, I’ve always enjoyed playing here.

“So no … I don’t want to play anywhere else. … I’ve got the term left on my deal, and I plan on being here in training camp next year. I haven’t been told otherwise. That’s my intention and I don’t want speculate any other way.”

Parise was a healthy scratch in three of Minnesota’s final four regular-season games and the first three of a seven-game loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup First Round. He scored three points (two goals, one assist) in four games after forward Marcus Johansson broke his arm in Game 3.

“The hardest part is watching your teammates play,” Parise said. “I think watching them play in the playoffs for those first three games was brutal. You play the game. You start each season so excited about the season, but with the prospect of playoffs and playing in playoffs. When you have to watch your team play, that’s tough. That was hard.

“I’m a pretty low-maintenance guy, I think. Just playing and helping the team win and being a part of the team and contributing. I think that’s all that any player asks for.”

Parise said he plans to use the experience as extra motivation in the offseason. He scored 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) in 45 games this season, and his 37 points (16 goals, 21 assists) in 44 games are the most in Wild playoff history.

“I have no problem coming back in here ready to go,” Parise said. “That’s where my mentality is right now. You always hope that you come back with a clean slate and spots are up for grabs. I’m very confident that if spots are up for grabs, I’ll be able to grab one of those. That’s what I’m looking forward to, and then we’ll see what happens.”