Ryan Parent will finally get to don the sweater of the team that drafted him.
The Nashville Predators first round pick in 2005 has inked a two-year, $1.85 million deal. The 23-year old defenseman came over from the Philadelphia Flyers when General Manager David Poile traded Dan Hamhuis‘ negotiating rights back on June 19, 2010.
You might also remember Parent’s name in another deal, however. Back in 2007, when Poile engineered the trade that brought Peter Forsberg to Music City in hopes he was the final piece to a Stanley Cup puzzle, Parent went the other way along with Scottie Upshall and first and third round picks in the 2007 draft. Since the Predators got their first round pick back from Philadelphia later that summer, and with Parent coming back “home” in the Hamhuis trade this summer, the Forsberg trade can now be read: “Forsberg to Nashville for Upshall and a third round pick.” A trade anyone in their right mind would do over and over again, given the circumstances.
But that’s another argument for another day.
Ryan Parent unloads on New Jersey Devils captain Jamie Langenbrunner in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Just yesterday, predsblog.com wrote a piece calling attention to Parent’s Corsi Rating and how it was the worst in the league (by far). Corsi Ratings are a lot like plus/minus ratings in that some people take them very seriously while others think it’s a huge waste of time and effort. That’s just what happens when the definition of a stat is hard to understand. That being said, whether you put stock in Corsi Ratings or not, it’s hard to ignore the fact that Parent’s rating was dead last among NHL defenseman last year (-22.0). The second worst player was Edmonton’s Jason Strudwick, who weighed in with a -16.3. That’s a 7.7 difference, the largest spread between any two defenseman in the entire league.
But let’s get to the contract details and where the new signee fits in.
The deal calls for Parent to make $850,000 this season and $1 million next year. He figures to crack the Nashville opening night roster as either the number four or six defenseman. Can he hold his own while Cody Franson goes through some growing pains in his sophomore season? Will he have to be paired with Francis Bouillon in order to minimize his mistakes, leaving Franson and a rookie blueliner to shore up the third pairing? Does he duke it out with Kevin Klein nightly to stay out of the press box?
There are quite a few questions coming into training camp and, obviously, they don’t all revolve around the offense. The depth chart on the blueline is just as confusing. The answers will start to work themselves out come September.
Never really known for his offensive prowess, Parent has only seven points in 102 NHL games. He’s also never played more than 48 games in an NHL season and has spent time in the AHL in four of his five professional campaigns.
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INSERT PHOTO CREDIT: John Angelillo // UPI