Ryan Suter
Ryan Suter (born January 21, 1985) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman and alternate captain with the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has also played for the Nashville Predators.
Ryan’s father, Bob Suter, was a member of the historic gold medal-winning 1980 United States Olympic hockey team that defeated the Soviet Union in the famous “Miracle on Ice” game.[2] Ryan’s uncle Gary Suter was also a longtime standout in the NHL.[3] Ryan was alternate captain for the U.S. national team, earning a silver medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics.[4][5]
Playing career
Nashville Predators
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Suter played for the Madison Capitols, Culver Military Academy and then went on to the USA Hockey’s National Development Team in Ann Arbor, Michigan, before he was drafted seventh overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.[6] He then played one year with the Wisconsin Badgers (Western Collegiate Hockey Association in NCAA Division I)[7] before joining the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League (AHL) during the 2004–05 season.[8] He played his rookie season in the NHL with the Predators in 2005–06.[9]
On June 16, 2008, Suter signed a four-year, $14 million contract extension with the Predators which commenced for the 2008–09 NHL season.[10]
Minnesota Wild
On July 4, 2012, Suter signed a 13-year, $98 million contract with the Minnesota Wild. He and fellow free agent signee Zach Parise were introduced to the media on July 10 and were announced as alternate captains under captain Mikko Koivu.[11][12] Suter got off to a rough start with a –7 plus-minus rating in his first nine games. However, once he began pairing with rookie defenseman Jonas Brodin, Suter began playing to expectations and was among three finalists for the James Norris Memorial Trophy, awarded yearly to the NHL’s top defenseman during the regular season. For the season, Suter averaged an NHL-leading 27:17 minutes of ice time as he helped Minnesota reach the playoffs, where the team fell to the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round.
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Suter scored his first NHL hat-trick on January 4, 2014, against the Washington Capitals; his first two goals came on the power play 38 seconds apart in the second period, and in the third period, right after his penalty expired, Suter scored his third goal on a two-on-one with defenseman Clayton Stoner.[13] This goal sealed what would eventually be a 5–3 victory for the Wild.
During the 2015–16 season, Suter set a franchise record for the Minnesota Wild with the most points by a defenseman in a single season. With 43 assists and 51 points, he also set a personal best in both categories. Throughout his tenure with the Wild, he has continuously been relied upon to play a large number of minutes including on the power play and on the penalty kill.
On October 19, 2018, in a 3–1 win against the Dallas Stars, Suter recorded his 500th NHL point, becoming the 11th American-born defensemen to reach the milestone.[14] Later that month, on October 25, Suter played in his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 109th defenseman to reach the milestone.[15]
International
 Canada‘s Jonathan Toews guards the puck from Suter during the 2010 Winter Olympics |
||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  United States |
||
| Ice hockey | ||
| Olympic Games | ||
 |
2010 Vancouver | |
| World Junior Championships | ||
 |
2004 Helsinki | |
| IIHF World U18 Championships | ||
|
2002 Trnava | |
| World U-17 Hockey Challenge | ||
|
2002 Manitoba | |
Suter has represented the United States in eleven tournaments, and has won three gold medals.
I feel it’s an honor to wear the Team USA Jersey and every time I’m on the ice I play my hardest and give everything I have. Playing for Team USA is one of those things you look forward to. When I got the call and was asked to play on this team, it was an easy answer. It didn’t matter who was on the team or who the coach was. It’s just an honor to wear the jersey and compete for your country.”[16]
On January 1, 2010, Suter was named to the United States’ roster for the 2010 Winter Olympics. He was one of the team’s alternate captains.[17]
In 2016, he was also selected to represent the United States at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey alongside Wild teammate, Zach Parise.
On April 19, 2019, Suter returned to the International stage for the first time in three years as he accepted an invitation to represent Team USA at the 2019 IIHF World Championship, held in Bratislava and Kosice, Slovakia.[18]
In 2020, Suter was introduced into the IIHF All-Time USA Team.
Personal life
Suter resides in Madison, Wisconsin, during the NHL off-season. He is married to Becky Suter (née Palmer), who is from Bloomington, Minnesota. Ryan and Becky have three children together.[19][20] His uncle is Gary Suter. Ryan’s father, Bob Suter, member of the Miracle on Ice U.S. hockey team in the 1980 Winter Olympics, died September 9, 2014.[21]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2000–01 | Culver Military Academy | HS-Prep | 26 | 13 | 32 | 45 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | U.S. NTDP U17 | USDP | 8 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | U.S. NTDP U18 | USDP | 27 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | U.S. NTDP U18 | NAHL | 35 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 75 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | U.S. NTDP U18 | USDP | 42 | 7 | 17 | 24 | 124 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | U.S. NTDP U18 | NAHL | 9 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Wisconsin Badgers | WCHA | 39 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 93 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 63 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 70 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 16 | ||
| 2005–06 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 71 | 1 | 15 | 16 | 66 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 82 | 8 | 16 | 24 | 54 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 2007–08 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 76 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 71 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2008–09 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 82 | 7 | 38 | 45 | 73 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 82 | 4 | 33 | 37 | 48 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 70 | 4 | 35 | 39 | 54 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 2011–12 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 79 | 7 | 39 | 46 | 30 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2012–13 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 48 | 4 | 28 | 32 | 28 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2013–14 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 82 | 8 | 35 | 43 | 34 | 13 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 4 | ||
| 2014–15 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 77 | 2 | 36 | 38 | 48 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2015–16 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 82 | 8 | 43 | 51 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 2016–17 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 82 | 9 | 31 | 40 | 36 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | ||
| 2017–18 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 78 | 6 | 45 | 51 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 82 | 7 | 40 | 47 | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 69 | 8 | 40 | 48 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 1,142 | 90 | 498 | 588 | 655 | 84 | 6 | 25 | 31 | 44 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | United States | U17 |  |
7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | |
| 2002 | United States | WJC18 | |
8 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 12 | |
| 2003 | United States | WJC | 4th | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | |
| 2003 | United States | WJC18 | 4th | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 22 | |
| 2004 | United States | WJC | |
6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 | |
| 2005 | United States | WJC | 4th | 7 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 20 | |
| 2005 | United States | WC | 6th | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2006 | United States | WC | 7th | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | |
| 2007 | United States | WC | 5th | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | |
| 2009 | United States | WC | 4th | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | |
| 2010 | United States | OG |  |
6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2014 | United States | OG | 4th | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | |
| 2016 | United States | WCH | 7th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2019 | United States | WC | 7th | 8 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 4 | |
| Junior totals | 41 | 7 | 22 | 29 | 68 | ||||
| Senior totals | 47 | 3 | 18 | 21 | 40 | ||||
Awards and honors
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| All-WCHA Rookie Team | 2004 | |
| All-WCHA Third Team | 2004 | |
| NHL | ||
| All-Star Game | 2012, 2015, 2017 | |
| First All-Star Team | 2013 | |
| International | ||
| IIHF All-Time USA Team | 2020 | |
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