After a disappointing and injury-riddled 2017-18 season, Zach Parise has declared himself healthy and "cleared to do everything". He's ready to come back and be an important part of the Minnesota Wild upcoming season. Parise was injured during Game 3 of the Western Conference First-Round matchup against the Winnipeg Jets. He was also limited to 42 games last season after he had microdiscectomy surgery Oct. 24. He didn't join the team until January of 2018 and when he did return, it took some time for Parise to find his rhythm. But, in the final 18 games of the regular season, Parise had 12 points. His three goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs led all  Minnesota Wild players. On Wednesday, Parise got into his first game-type situation when he took part in Da Beauty League, a weekly 4-on-4 summer league featuring other NHL players. He said, "It's good to get back out there. I feel fine." He did admit he was glad there was no hitting, but so far, everything seems to be on track to be 100 percent for the season.

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[caption id="attachment_410107" align="alignnone" width="2257"] Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports[/caption] Even in just giving his injury a little rest time, Parise's said his sternum was feeling better within one week of NHL season closing. He added that his young kids gave it the first real test it needed, often jumping on him even though he tried to remind them he needed to rest, but Wednesday's game was something he feels quite positive about.
The next step is getting back into normal offseason training, including more games and he isn't worried about aggravating the injury. Since, "no one's out there trying to hurt anybody," Parise feels like this is the perfect ascension to ensuring he's absolutely ready to take full contact when the 2018-19 season beings. The Minnesota Wild are hoping he rebounds as well. 33, Parise still has seven seasons left on a contract that pays him $7,538,462 per season.

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