OTD: Zach Parise, Ryan Suter signed by Minnesota Wild to matching huge deals

July 4, 2012 will forever go down as one of the most key dates in Minnesota Wild history, as they doled out the two biggest contracts in team history to a pair of players that they'd never exit the 2nd round of the postseason with.

Former New Jersey Devils captain Zach Parise and Nashville Predators stalwart defenseman Ryan Suter were lured to the State of Hockey from their respective clubs, inking identical 13-year, $98 million contracts ($7.54 million average annual value). The two blockbuster signings were expected to finally put the Wild over the hump and start seriously competing for the Stanley Cup. 

Of course, Parise is a local of Minnesota in the fact that he's a Twin Cities native, and attended Shattuck-St. Mary's school in Faribault. Meanwhile, Suter grew up in neighboring Madison, Wis. and played a season of collegiate hockey with the Wisconsin Badgers. 

"We both felt that this would be a great fit for both of us," said Parise during the pair's introductory press conference on July 9. "We have played on winning teams before and teams that have done well, and hopefully we can do the same here."

"It was a good feeling, walking downstairs and seeing the logos and going through and getting a little tour of the locker room," Suter said. "I think we both got really excited to start." 

However, the Wild weren't able to achieve any serious postseason success with both Parise and Suter in the fold. During the regular season, the Wild compiled a total record of 354-237-74 (.588) with the pair, while advancing to the postseason eight times. However, they'd only manage to make it past Round 1 on a single occasion by defeating the St. Louis Blues in 2014.

Both Parise and Suter would be bought out of the final years of their respective deals by GM Bill Guerin last offseason; Suter subsequently signed with the rival Dallas Stars, while Parise headed east for the New York Islanders.