Zach Parise, Ryan Suter Each Sign 13-Year Deal With Minnesota Wild

by Ricky Doyle on Wed, Jul 4, 2012 at 12:45PM

The Minnesota Wild are serious about becoming relevant again, reeling in the two biggest fish in this year's free-agent pond on Wednesday.

Zach Parise and Ryan Suter have each agreed to terms on a 13-year deal with the Wild, the team announced.

Each player will earn $98 million as part of his deal, which averages out to an annual value of $7.538 million each, according to TSN.

This is huge news for the Wild and the NHL. Parise and Suter were the two biggest names on the free-agent market this offseason, and there appeared to be plenty of interest in both.

Suter reportedly received a 13-year, $90 million contract offer from the Red Wings before deciding to team up with Parise in Minnesota.

Parise and Suter were both drafted in 2003, with Suter going to the Predators seventh overall and Parise getting drafted 17th overall by the Devils. This actually marks the second time they'll team up, as they did so for the USA squad when it won the Silver medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Parise compiled 31-38-69 totals while leading the Devils to a Stanley Cup appearance last season. He's eclipsed the 30-goal mark five times in his career, which includes netting a career-high 45 in 2008-09 (he had 94 points that season).

Suter, meanwhile, is regarded as one of the game's bright young defenseman, and he'll go a long way toward stabilizing the Minnesota blue line.