Wild's Ryan Suter having one of his best seasons yet

Success has come Ryan Suter’s way often in his hockey career, but this season with the Minnesota Wild could be his best one yet.

“We’ve had good teams and we’ve had successes in the past, but to be consistently successful like we’ve been is the first time here,” Suter said.

Suter is heading to his third NHL All-Star Game in Los Angeles this weekend thanks to a start to the season that’s been one of his most impressive in Minnesota; a campaign where he is playing some of the best hockey of his career.

“I feel stronger, seeing the ice a little easier, but that comes with time,” Suter said. “As you play more, you get more comfortable.”

Suter’s comfort level appears to be at an all-time high, all it takes is one look at his resume this season. The Wild defenseman leads the NHL in plus/minus rating, is second in the league for time on ice and is only one goal away from tying his career-high for a season with 35 games to play.

The stats are impressive, but he’s paying no attention to the numbers.

“The point thing, that doesn’t matter to me one bit,” Suter said. “I could have one goal and be playing the same way, and still feel the same way I do.”

The Wild’s first half success story also comes with post-season expectations of a better ending this year. Suter is not talking playoffs just yet, especially with 30-plus games to play, but he is confident that the team is skating in the right direction after the best start in franchise history.

“We want to continue to take steps,” Suter said. “A couple of years ago, we went to the second round [of the playoffs], last year we lost in the first. That was a step back, now we have to keep taking steps forward.”