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Wild's Ryan Suter nominated for Masterton Trophy

The Iron Man defenseman has bounced back from a gruesome ankle injury to again lead the NHL in time on ice.
Credit: AP Images

ST PAUL, Minn. — Ryan Suter is known as the NHL's Iron Man, a defender who year after year led the league in ice time while performing at a level that few of his peers could. Injuries happened to others... not to him.

That was until last year, when a gruesome break of his ankle late in the 2018-19 season left some wondering if Suter would ever be the player he once was. The announcement of his nomination for the 2019 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy suggests those doubters were slightly off base, at best... or downright wrong, at the worst.

The Masterton goes each year to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to the sport of hockey. Despite surgery on his broken ankle April 5, 2018, and the extensive rehab afterwards, Suter has not missed a game this season. The 34-year-old Madison native has notched 46 points in 77 games with the Wild this season and leads the NHL in time on ice per game at 26:52 minutes. He skated a season-high 32 minutes and 36 seconds at Montreal Jan. 7, the highest ice time by a NHL player in a regulation game this season. 

The Masterton Trophy is named after former North Star Bill Masterton, who died on Jan. 15, 1968, after suffering head injuries during a game. The winner of the Masterton Trophy is selected by a poll among the 31 chapters of the Professional Hockey Writers Association at the end of the regular season. 

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