Minnesota may have lost their first game of the season 4-1 to the Colorado Avalanche, but there is still some positive to take away from their opening game. One of the bright spots was Zach Parise’s performance. Not only did he score the Wild’s only goal, but this was one of Parise’s most dangerous offensive performances of the last few years.

Against Colorado, he was a constant threat in front of Semyon Varlamov. Of his six inner slot shots, three were deflections, while he also picked up four offensive rebounds, all of which are league-highs. Granted, this is only one game, but Parise has now scored nine goals in the last nine games he’s played, going back to the end of last season and the playoffs. While it’s fair to wonder how much tread is left on the 34-year-old’s tires after losing half of last season to injury and not cracking the 50-point plateau since 2015-16, Wild fans should be cautiously optimistic he could return to form if he avoids the injury bug (knock on wood).