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New Jersey Devils: Patrik Elias Wants To Play One More Year |
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At the end of the New Jersey Devils' season finale Patrik Elias had fans on their feet chanting "one more year" following a magical three-point performance.
It seems like those fans just might get their wish.
Elias' agent, Allan Walsh, told Sportsnet that he would love to return to the Devils for another season if he feels his body can handle it.
“He desperately wants to play one more year,” Elias’s agent, Allan Walsh, told Sportsnet. “We’re not talking to other teams. If Patrik is able to play at the level he expects himself to play, if he can contribute to a team, I think New Jersey would very much love to have him back.”
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“I would say it’s a similar situation to what Teemu Selanne went through with Anaheim for several years,” Walsh explained. “When he felt his knee would hold up and he felt good, he told Anaheim, ‘I’m ready to commit to another year.’ And then they worked out a deal.”
Elias' best days are long behind him but he can still contribute at the NHL level.
Over the last two years has recorded 15 goals and 42 points in 85 games while playing for an extremely low scoring team. Those are respectable totals.
He'd have to play a lesser role than he's accustomed to but I think he could chip in offensively here and there in a middle-6 role at evens as well as on the 2nd power play.
Pavel Zacha seems like a good bet to crack the Devils' lineup full-time this year, too, and I think having his childhood hero around to show him the ropes would be beneficial.
This won't be resolved any time soon, obviously, but let's hope Elias has one more year left in him.
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