NY Islanders: Zach Parise wins the Bob Nystrom Award (again)

Two years with the New York Islanders and two Bob Nystrom Awards for Zach Parise

Parise was the favorite to win the award for the second consecutive season after the 38-year-old played in all 82 games for the second year in a row, scoring 21 goals in his 18th NHL season. Per the team's press release, he is the fourth Islander to win the award multiple times, joining Matt Martin, Claude Lapointe, and Casey Cizikas.

Cizikas was the last back-to-back winner of the award in 2018 and 2019. Martin, a six-time winner, is the only player in franchise history to win the trophy inspired by "Mr. Islander" more than three times. Meanwhile, Lapointe won it three times.

The Bob Nystrom Award is an Islanders team award given each year to the player who "best exemplifies leadership, hustle, and dedication" and was first awarded in 1991 and is named after the Islanders' Hall of Famer, who scored the franchise's biggest goal and has his No. 23 retired.

Parise has given the Islanders everything they could've imagined and a whole lot more since he was signed by GM Lou Lamoriello in September 2021 after being bought out by the Minnesota Wild. The leadership and work ethic off the ice was expected, but the production surpassed perhaps even Parise's expectations after he fell out of the Wild lineup during the 2020-21 season.

This year he became the first 38-year-old in team history to score more than 20 in a season. He was also the team's nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy.

Whether or not Parise returns for his third Islanders season and 19th in the NHL is up to him. Lamoriello has made it clear that there will be a spot on the roster for him if he decides to come back and Parise has stated that he will either play on Long Island next season or retire.

The team expects to know soon what Parise has decided. If he does retire, they'll have to replace not only his 20+ goals, but all the intangibles he brought to the lineup every night throughout the season in two memorable years with the Islanders.