Continued: Parrish's stay with Wild ends abruptly

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When hometown kid Mark Parrish signed the longest contract in Wild history two summers ago, he never could have imagined it would end this abruptly, this unceremoniously.

The Minnesota native was ecstatic to get the chance to play NHL hockey down the road from where he starred in high school at Bloomington Jefferson.

Instead, after signing a five-year, $13.25 million deal, Parrish spent much of two seasons injured and chained to coach Jacques Lemaire's doghouse.

Tuesday, he was placed on waivers. Today, his Wild career prematurely will conclude when another team claims him or the Wild buys out the remaining three years of his contract, making him a free agent.

"It was a dream of mine growing up to play for the North Stars. Since they were gone, the Wild was the next best thing," Parrish, 31, said Tuesday night. "It's great that I got to fulfill that part of the dream, but I can definitely say it didn't go as I had hoped."

After not being able to trade Parrish, General Manager Doug Risebrough chose this route in order to free up salary cap space (the Wild is $2.13 million under the $56.7 million cap), as well as give Parrish a chance to start fresh elsewhere.

"I'm uncomfortable how close we are to the cap," Risebrough said. "I was looking for solutions, and not a small solution, a big solution. Very few people fell into that category.

"I looked at our existing players. We're invested in our young players. Who's left? It's Parrish. It's just the timing of our team right now, and I wanted to give Mark a chance to go somewhere else. ... I thought I owed it to him."

Parrish, who scored 35 goals and 69 points in 142 games with the Wild and even spent time as captain, said he was "taken aback" even though his role was limited by Lemaire.

"Last year was hard on me physically with the string of injuries and mentally with the [limited ice time and scratches], and having my [first child], it all compiled into a rough second half," he said. "I guess, this is the pinnacle, maybe a fitting end to that second half.

"But I was really excited for the season, for a fresh start and a clean slate to prove I'm still a good player. I've been working hard to start anew."

In 2006-07, the Wild got so close to the cap, the team barely could afford to replace its injured players. This time, Risebrough wanted to create flexibility, and not just for injuries. He wants the ability to pursue trades, as well as provide prospects such as Colton Gillies and Cal Clutterbuck a chance to make the team.

If Parrish is claimed, that team would incur the final $8.35 million of his contract. If he clears, the Wild plans to buy him out for two-thirds, or $5,566,667.

The Wild could then spread that cap hit over twice the term of the contract, or six years. So, instead of being charged $2.65 million the next three years, the Wild would be charged a $727,778 cap hit in Years 1 and 2 and a $927,778 cap hit in Years 3-6.

If Parrish is bought out, the Wild saves $1.922 million against this season's cap, and it scales back to $52.649 million. The offseason buyout deadline is the third day following a club's final arbitration settlement. The Wild signed Pierre-Marc Bouchard to a five-year deal after midnight Eastern Time Saturday, so Tuesday was that deadline.

"So I'm not sure it's totally about Mark's performance as it's just really the only option," Risebrough said.

But he added: "All older players have to learn to adjust their games somewhat because their skills aren't necessarily the same. Mark is that type of player. ... Right now, here, he was not giving a $2.8 million performance or $2.65 million [cap hit]."

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