This story seems pretty straightforward to me. Zach Parise is freshly unemployed after being bought out by the Minnesota Wild. He’s getting paid $6 million in cash this season from the Wild and probably still has a lot to give in the NHL.
Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning are on a quest to shed salary cap space and replace it with some cheap forwards. The Bolts are expected to graduate a handful of Syracuse Crunch prospects, but having a known quantity like Parise would definitely help in the top nine. Considering how much he’s getting paid by the Wild, it’s hard to imagine Parise would want more than a million or so on a short term deal with their reigning two-time Stanley Cup Champions.