NewJersey.com - Tuesday, February 16, 2010    BY TOM GULITTI

Zach Parise's Devils' teammates and the players he competes against in the NHL already know how good he is. So do Devils' fans.

If things go well for Parise and the U.S. Olympic team over the next two weeks, maybe the rest of the country will find out, too.

The Americans open the 2010 Olympic men's ice hockey competition at 3 o'clock today in Vancouver against Switzerland (USA Network). With a comparatively young team — only three players have previous Olympic experience — going up against powerhouses from Canada and Russia and the defending gold medalists from Sweden, the U.S. is not considered a medal favorite.

But if the U.S. has a successful run and challenges for its first Olympic gold in men's ice hockey since the 1980 "Miracle on Ice," chances are that Parise will play a big role in it. And America does have a way of embracing Olympic heroes.

"It's going to be a good opportunity," Devils and Team USA captain Jamie Langenbrunner said. "He's probably going to get to play with a couple of extremely talented guys that are going to make even him that much better and it's going to be definitely a chance to show everybody. This is just the type of tournament where he's going to be focused and excited to be a part of it."

This is Parise's first Olympics, but he has a successful track record with USA Hockey. He led the U.S. to its first World Junior Championships title in 2004 in Helsinki, Finland, and was the tournament's leading scorer and most valuable player.

Parise also represented the U.S. twice at the world championships. He knows the Olympics will provide a much larger stage, though, and he's embracing that.

"That makes it more fun when you really have the whole country supporting you," Parise said. "A lot of times people don't know the world championships are going on. It does seem like you have the non-ordinary hockey fans that are going to be tuning in, which is awesome.

"It's important for us to have a good tournament and play well and kind of sell the game in the U.S."

Parise's father, J.P., was an important role player for Canada in its victory over the Soviet Union in the 1972 Summit Series – a defining hockey moment north of the border. But, though the Olympics are in his native country, J.P. will be rooting for his son and the U.S.

"He'd better be," Zach joked. "I'm paying for his tickets."

Parise, 25, a native of Prior Lake, Minn., has inherited his father's tireless work ethic and combined it with world-class skill. A 2008-09 second-team NHL All-Star, Parise is the potential face of USA Hockey for years to come.

After leading U.S.-born NHL players with 45 goals and 94 points last season, Parise is tied with the Ducks' Bobby Ryan (a Cherry Hill native) for most goals among Americans this season with 28 and his 61 points are second to the Blackhawks' Patrick Kane's 67.

Parise will play on Team USA's top line with Kane and Colorado Avalanche center Paul Stastny.

Team USA general manager Brian Burke and head coach Ron Wilson thought enough of Parise's leadership abilities that they named him one of the squad's alternate captains. He is also an alternate captain for the Devils.

"It's a tribute to his game, the way he works, the way everybody sees him," said Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur, who will be appearing in his fourth Olympics for Canada. "He's been playing with us for a few years now and you can tell that he's taking this responsibility great. When you're on the outside looking at a player like that, you've got to stop and be amazed.

"The easy way is just to step back and go with the flow. He wants to be the guy."

Parise said he doesn't remember what first got him thinking about playing in the Olympics. He does recall seeing the 2004 movie, "Miracle," which tells the story of the 1980 U.S. team and thinking, "That would be great. That would be awesome."

"Hopefully," Parise said, "we'll have some of that same luck that they did."

E-mail: gulitti@northjersey.com

Zach Parise's Devils' teammates and the players he competes against in the NHL already know how good he is. So do Devils' fans.

If things go well for Parise and the U.S. Olympic team over the next two weeks, maybe the rest of the country will find out, too.

The Americans open the 2010 Olympic men's ice hockey competition at 3 o'clock today in Vancouver against Switzerland (USA Network). With a comparatively young team — only three players have previous Olympic experience — going up against powerhouses from Canada and Russia and the defending gold medalists from Sweden, the U.S. is not considered a medal favorite.

But if the U.S. has a successful run and challenges for its first Olympic gold in men's ice hockey since the 1980 "Miracle on Ice," chances are that Parise will play a big role in it. And America does have a way of embracing Olympic heroes.

"It's going to be a good opportunity," Devils and Team USA captain Jamie Langenbrunner said. "He's probably going to get to play with a couple of extremely talented guys that are going to make even him that much better and it's going to be definitely a chance to show everybody. This is just the type of tournament where he's going to be focused and excited to be a part of it."

This is Parise's first Olympics, but he has a successful track record with USA Hockey. He led the U.S. to its first World Junior Championships title in 2004 in Helsinki, Finland, and was the tournament's leading scorer and most valuable player.

Parise also represented the U.S. twice at the world championships. He knows the Olympics will provide a much larger stage, though, and he's embracing that.

"That makes it more fun when you really have the whole country supporting you," Parise said. "A lot of times people don't know the world championships are going on. It does seem like you have the non-ordinary hockey fans that are going to be tuning in, which is awesome.

"It's important for us to have a good tournament and play well and kind of sell the game in the U.S."

Parise's father, J.P., was an important role player for Canada in its victory over the Soviet Union in the 1972 Summit Series – a defining hockey moment north of the border. But, though the Olympics are in his native country, J.P. will be rooting for his son and the U.S.

"He'd better be," Zach joked. "I'm paying for his tickets."

Parise, 25, a native of Prior Lake, Minn., has inherited his father's tireless work ethic and combined it with world-class skill. A 2008-09 second-team NHL All-Star, Parise is the potential face of USA Hockey for years to come.

After leading U.S.-born NHL players with 45 goals and 94 points last season, Parise is tied with the Ducks' Bobby Ryan (a Cherry Hill native) for most goals among Americans this season with 28 and his 61 points are second to the Blackhawks' Patrick Kane's 67.

Parise will play on Team USA's top line with Kane and Colorado Avalanche center Paul Stastny.

Team USA general manager Brian Burke and head coach Ron Wilson thought enough of Parise's leadership abilities that they named him one of the squad's alternate captains. He is also an alternate captain for the Devils.

"It's a tribute to his game, the way he works, the way everybody sees him," said Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur, who will be appearing in his fourth Olympics for Canada. "He's been playing with us for a few years now and you can tell that he's taking this responsibility great. When you're on the outside looking at a player like that, you've got to stop and be amazed.

"The easy way is just to step back and go with the flow. He wants to be the guy."

Parise said he doesn't remember what first got him thinking about playing in the Olympics. He does recall seeing the 2004 movie, "Miracle," which tells the story of the 1980 U.S. team and thinking, "That would be great. That would be awesome."

"Hopefully," Parise said, "we'll have some of that same luck that they did."

E-mail: gulitti@northjersey.com