Devils at Wild
The New Jersey Devils face off against their former captain when they visit Zach Parise and the Minnesota Wild on Sunday. Just weeks after helping lead New Jersey to the Stanley Cup final, Parise spurned the club and signed a 13-year, $98 million contract with Minnesota on July 4, 2012. "It will be really weird, I think," Parise told NJ.com. "I'm still good friends with a lot of the guys."
Parise will not have to battle his closest friend on the Devils as Travis Zajac will miss his second straight game with an ankle injury. New Jersey also will be without Patrik Elias due to an upper-body injury. The Devils had their first winning streak of the season snapped at two with a 1-0 home loss to Philadelphia on Saturday, while the Wild aim for their second straight victory after edging Montreal 4-3 at home on Friday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New Jersey), FSN North (Minnesota)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (3-6-4): New Jersey sorely missed Zajac and Elias against the Flyers, as it was shut out for the third time this season. Martin Brodeur made 21 saves in a losing effort and told the Newark Star-Ledger after the game that he would not start Sunday's game. Cory Schneider, who is on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, flew to Minnesota on Saturday, indicating he is ready to return to action.
ABOUT THE WILD (7-4-3): Parise is tied with Jason Pominville and Mikael Granlund for the team scoring lead with 10 points. All of Granlund's points are assists, while Pominville has scored nine goals - including five over his last three games. Defenseman Keith Ballard returned from a seven-game absence due to an upper-body injury on Friday and notched two assists for his first multi-point performance since March 21, 2010.
OVERTIME
1. New Jersey RW Jaromir Jagr had his five-game point streak halted Saturday.
2. Parise will visit New Jersey for the first time since leaving the Devils on March 22.
3. The Devils have registered a total of 36 shots on goal over their last two games.