Panthers Vs Wild: 5 Things To Watch

Oct 17, 2013; Tampa, FL, USA; Minnesota Wild defenseman

(20) skates with the puck as Tampa Bay Lightning center

(91) defends during the third period at Tampa Bay Times Forum. Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Minnesota Wild 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

3) Ryan Suter and Zach Parise

Last offseason, the Minnesota Wild committed $196 million to sign two of the games brightest stars, Ryan Suter and Zach Parise. Minnesota dished out matching 13-year $98 million contracts to the pair. The result of the “wild” spending spree was the 8th seed in the Western Conference and a first round defeat at the hands of the eventual Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.

The duo justified their contracts as Parise led the Wild in scoring (18-20-38) while Suter led the entire league in ice time at 27:16 per game. Parise and Suter are off to a strong start for the Wild with Parise leading the team with four goals and Suter again pacing the league in playing time at 29:01 per game. For the Panther to get the win tonight, shutting down Parise and finding a way to score with Suter on the ice will be paramount.