The New York Islanders found their way back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this past season after missing out on them entirely the year before, but ended up bowing out in the first round after losing to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Islanders haven't been all that busy when it comes to upgrading their roster this offseason, but it's clear that their players want to see veteran forward Zach Parise brought back in free agency.

“I haven't pushed Zach at all, just let him take his time. I think a guy with that kind of resume, you kind of just let him do his thing. On the ice and off, he's a guy that works really hard, loves the game, loves being around it. Even though he's been around the League forever, he's still trying to get better and find a way to help the team. He just wants to win, so that's always good to be around.” – Brock Nelson, NHL.com

Even at 38 years of age, Parise managed to play in all 82 games for the second straight season with New York, racking up 21 goals and 13 assists for the Isles. Parise's teammates realize how special it is to play with a veteran who is still making these sorts of contributions, and Andres Lee was in full agreement with Brock Nelson when discussing Parise's importance to the team.

“It's really special to play with a guy like that. He's had such a successful career and you know, at his age, just to see what he's doing out on the ice is extremely impressive. And you can't find a better guy in the room.” – Anders Lee, NHL.com

Lee and Nelson realize just how crucial Parise was to their attacking depth over the past two seasons, and with the team largely standing pat in free agency to this point, that makes bringing him back all the more important. However, the veteran forward has remained noncommittal when it comes to his NHL future, and it will be interesting to see if the two sides end up finding common ground.