Ryan Suter Might Want to Call in Sick for Game 2

The Minnesota Wild beat the Dallas Stars 3-2 in a double-overtime thriller that started late on Monday night and went into early Tuesday morning. It was a physical game that took a lot out of both teams.

Ryan Suter is trying to hurt Kirill Kaprizov.

But it became apparent as the game went on that former Wild defenseman, Ryan Suter, was on a mission to take out superstar Kirill Kaprizov one dirty crosscheck at a time. Two that were caught on video. Neither were called as penalties.

Suter's done this a couple of times already, particularly to Kaprizov, who's now labouring on the Minnesota bench. Probably not in the league's best interests to have their star players getting taken out on night 1. pic.twitter.com/WX6656ctR7

— Jeff Veillette (@JeffVeillette) April 18, 2023

If you’re behind the times and came into this blog believing Ryan Suter was a modest midwestern dude who’s liked by teammates and respected by opponents then it’s time to face reality. Nobody likes or respects this guy.

Terrible teammate

He was an asshole while in Minnesota, who used his relationship with Wild owner Craig Leipold to hold teammates and coaches hostage. We found out after he left that he had been causing problems in the Wild locker room for years.

And shocker, it was revealed later that Suter was an unpopular figure in Nashville, where he was drafted out of college (at Wisconsin haha) and played for seven years before being signed by the Wild. Former defensive partner, Jason Arnott, talked about how Suter was constantly complaining about not getting what he thought he deserved while with the Predators.

“The attitude of Suts was night and day to Webs. All he would do is complain about, ‘how come he’s not on the power play’, ‘he doesn’t play enough’, ‘I can’t believe this guy is making this much money’. Webs, he was night and day. He wanted to learn and was super respectful and played hard. Two different dynamic of mentality of players.”

Jason Arnott – Cam and Strick Podcast

Time to take out the trash

Again, nobody likes Ryan Suter. That’s why there will be a lot of smiling faces across the league on Wednesday night (game 2) when Suter has to atone for his dirty crosschecking ways in game 1.

Whether it’s Ryan Reaves, Marcus Foligno or both, I expect Suter will be confronted immediately after puck drop, before he’s able to find Kaprizov again. According to Michael Russo (The Athletic), Wild players were ready to take out the trash in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, while celebrating their victory in the locker room.

Gaudreau, playing hurt, looked bothered at times. Middleton, who was outstanding, hobbled to the bench on one occasion. Same with Johansson and Kaprizov, who ate a couple vicious cross-checks from Ryan Suter, who is not a popular fixture at all inside his old locker room. Wild players were ripping the longtime former Wild defenseman to shreds in the celebratory postgame locker room.

Michael Russo – The Athletic

We all know how small and fragile Ryan Suter really is. If he is smart, he will call in sick or fake an injury before Wednesday’s game. Hopefully not, though. Because I’d love to see his teeth laying on the ice.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan