Nicholas J. Cotsonika's weekly Three Periods column will appear on Thursdays. This week's topics include Ryan Suter’s emergence for Minnesota after a “shellshock” of a start; high praise for 19-year-old Jonas Brodin; Teemu Selanne’s toughest season; realignment and expansion updates; and the Ducks’ biggest breakthroughs and surprises.

FIRST PERIOD: Suter starting to step it up for the Wild

Ryan Suter is finally starting to look like the star defenseman the Minnesota Wild thought it was getting last summer when it signed him to a 13-year, $98 million contract.

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Wait. Scratch that. Suter is already starting to look like the star defenseman the Wild thought it was getting. Because when you consider the circumstances, Suter is actually making a quick transition.

“At first, it was kind of shellshock,” Suter said. “It was like, ‘Oh, no. What am I getting myself into?’ But things are starting to settle down. It’s getting a lot easier.”

No one in Nashville wants to hear this, but it was hard for Suter to leave the Predators as a free agent. He had spent seven NHL seasons in one city with one coach (Barry Trotz) and one partner (Shea Weber). He knew his teammates. He knew the system. Heck, he helped design the system with Trotz and Weber.

“I kind of helped form what we wanted to do,” Suter said. “Now it’s kind of starting from scratch.”

Suter signed with the Wild in July, but he didn’t really join the team until January thanks to the NHL lockout. He was getting used to a new city while his wife was expecting a new baby. He was getting used to a new coach (Mike Yeo) and new partners (several). He went from Tom Gilbert to Jared Spurgeon to Jonas Brodin, then back to Spurgeon, then back to Gilbert, then back to Brodin. He was getting used to a new system – the Predators basically play man defense, the Wild zone – and he was thinking too much instead of reacting naturally. He said he had to reprogram his brain.

And he had to do it all with only a week of training camp and no preseason games, with heavy expectations. Zach Parise also signed a 13-year, $98 million deal, but his transition wasn’t as hard because he is a Minnesota native and a winger. Though Suter is quiet by nature, Parise could sense his frustration.

“He doesn’t really show it,” Parise said, “but you could tell just a little bit.”

Suter said it “probably took a good three weeks to a month to finally start feeling better.” In other words, it took about as long as a normal training camp and preseason.

Three weeks ago, Suter’s wife delivered a baby girl. For the last 11 games or so, Suter has had the same partner. Brodin has been impressive for a 19-year-old rookie – more on him in the Second Period – but the most important thing for Suter has been consistency. He has developed chemistry with Brodin and the forwards, like a quarterback with his receivers, putting the puck flat on their tape so they can carry it on the rush instead of tipping it ahead.

“He’s been unbelievable lately,” Parise said. “Now you can really see. I think he’s really gone to another level, the way he’s controlling the game and producing offensively.”

Suter was minus-7 in his first nine games. He had four points in his first 10 games. But entering Thursday night, he at least had an even rating in his past 16 games, and he had just gone on a seven-game point streak, one short of his career high. His 18 points tied him for sixth among defensemen, and they translated to a 58-point pace over an 82-game schedule. His career high is 46 points. He led the NHL in average ice time at 27:26 per game.

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