NJ Devils’ Ilya Kovalchuk: I haven’t given any contract advice to Parise

New Jersey Devils Russian forward Ilya Kovalchuk rejected the suggestion he advised his teammate Zach Parise on signing a new contract with the club.

«No [I haven’t – Sports.ru]. He’s a grown man. I just want him to stay here because, like I’ve said a lot of times, it will be good for the whole organization. He’s played for the team a long time. He’s our captain and hopefully he will sign a long term deal,» Kovalchuk said.

Kovalchuk added that there are more pressing issues for the team than Parise’s contract.

«We just have to think about the game right now,» he said. «You can only control your own business. We really hope he’s going to sign because, like I said, he’s our leader,» the player was quoted as saying in Fire&Ice.