St. Louis Blues sign Ryan Suter to one-year, $775,000 contract
A veteran blueliner has found another home within the Central Division.
On Wednesday, the St. Louis Blues announced they have signed defenseman Ryan Suter to a one-year contract. The deal will carry a $775,000 cap hit through the 2024-25 season.
The contract also allows Suter to earn $2.225 million in potential performance bonuses, giving the Madison, Wisconsin native a chance at making $3 million next season.
Unresticted free agent Ryan Suter is joining the Blues after agreeing to a one-year contract that includes performance bonuses. #stlblues
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According to team reporter Andy Strickland, Suter will receive a $225,000 bonus after 10 games played, $400,000 if he plays 30, $500,000 if he appears in 40, and $600,000 if he plays 60. If the Blues advance to the playoffs, and Suter is in the lineup for 60 games, he will receive another $500,000.
Suter was a free agent as the Dallas Stars bought out the last year of his four-year contract with an AAV of $3.65 million. He had been with the Stars since the final four years of a 13-year contract was bought out by the Minnesota Wild in 2021. That means Suter will be getting paid by the Wild, Stars and Blues during the 2024-25 season.
In 2023-24, the former Wisconsin Badger registered two goals and 15 assists with a +14 rating, posting four points in 19 playoff appearances.
Suter has been in the league for 19 years, starting his career with the Nashville Predators, the team that took him seventh overall in the 2003 NHL Draft. After seven years with the Preds, he, along with Zach Parise, infamously signed 13-year, $98 million contracts with the Wild in July 2012.
He went on to have some great years with the Wild. Suter scored 32 points in 48 games during the lockout-shortened 2013 season, was a runner-up for the Norris Trophy and was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team. He scored a career-high 51 points during the 2015-16 and 2017-18 seasons, helping the Wild make it to the playoffs in six consecutive seasons.
In two seasons with the Stars, Suter took a step back and played a supporting role for rising stars like Miro Heiskanen. Dallas made the playoffs in all three years Suter was there, making it to the Western Conference Final in 2023 and 2024, losing to the Vegas Golden Knights and Edmonton Oilers, respectively.
In 1,444 NHL games, Suter has notched 105 goals and 576 assists with a career plus/minus of +120. In 133 Stanley Cup Playoff games, the 39-year-old has posted seven goals and 37 assists.