Islanders: Playoff Production Underrated Part Of Zach Parise’s Game

Mar 14, 2021; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Wild left wing Zach Parise (11) looks on before a game against the Arizona Coyotes at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Nick Wosika-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 14, 2021; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Wild left wing Zach Parise (11) looks on before a game against the Arizona Coyotes at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Nick Wosika-USA TODAY Sports

Playoff production matters. Well, it does when it comes to the New York Islanders because they’re a team that has made the playoffs three years in a row and are now trying to get over the hump to win a championship.

When looking at Zach Parise, the “newest” Islander, many point to his goal production over the past couple of years. Sure, it wasn’t great in 2021 but he had 25 and 28 goals the previous two years.

Others like to talk about the connection with Lou Lamoreillo. Lou drafted Zach way back in 2003 and stuck with him through the 2011-2012 season. Or maybe you like to point to his double-digit power play goals from 2019 and 2020.

All of these are great things to talk about with Pairse, but it may be missing the most beneficial point. He’s really good in the playoffs.

On the Eyes on Isles Patreon, we discussed in detail the Zach Parise deal and what it would mean to this team. One of the things we wanted to hit on was his play in the playoffs.

https://twitter.com/eyesonislesFS/status/1437750631868026881

After not having much of a role in the regular season, relegated to the third line, Parise was great for Minnesota in four playoff games this year. He had two goals and an assist including a tying goal in Game 7 against Vegas.

Since 2016-2017, Parise has 12 points (7 goals, 5 assists) in 16 playoff games. That’s a .75 points per game clip in the playoffs from someone between the ages of 32 and 36. In his career, he has 80 points in 105 games which is a pace of 62 points over an 82 game season.

Like JG Pageau, who was traded for by Lou Lamoriello in 2020, the Islanders found another player who has been known to have success come playoff time. This stuff matters.

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When going on a deep run, you need to have your scoring come from multiple areas. Potentially having Parise and Pageau on the same line and having it be line three just shows how good the Islanders’ depth could be when fully stocked and healthy.

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