Getting in front of a slap shot is one of the dangers of being a hockey player. When you’re Zach Parise of the Devils, steering clear of blue line bombs is in your best interest, but it’s unavoidable at times. Such was the case yesterday afternoon when Parise took a Milan Jurcina slap shot off his hand.
Now, Parise is just hoping that there aren’t any lingering effects from getting in the way. As he tells Tom Gulitti of Fire & Ice, he’s really hoping his hand isn’t broken.
“It’s OK,” Parise said. “I just took a puck into it. It hurt for a little while, but it’s OK.”
Parise said he had not had an X-ray on his hand yet. When I asked him if he needed one, he said, “I hope not.”
Parise didn’t miss any action after getting hit, so at the very least adrenaline kept him playing. The Devils already have Travis Zajac out of action and if Parise’s hand is busted, they’re in deep trouble.
Going without Zajac has been tricky but doable. Going without Parise would up the pressure on Ilya Kovalchuk, Patrik Elias, and Adam Henrique to produce big numbers. With the playoffs coming up soon, that’s one stress the Devils would like to avoid.
Update (9:53 a.m. ET): The joy of the Internet, moments after this was posted, Rich Chere of The Star-Ledger hears from Lou Lamoriello that x-rays on Parise’s hand were negative. Go ahead and exhale, New Jersey.