A 17-year National Hockey League veteran and Olympic silver medalist, Gary Suter is one of the top American defensemen of all time.

Suter spent two years (1981-83) with the United States Hockey League's Dubuque Fighting Saints and two years (1983-85) with the University of Wisconsin men's ice hockey team before entering the professional ranks with the NHL's Calgary Flames, who selected him in the ninth round (180th overall) of the 1984 NHL Entry Draft.

Prior to entering the NHL, Suter laced up the skates twice for Team USA, participating in the 1984 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship in 1984 and then joining the U.S. Men's National Team at the IIHF Men's World Championship the following year.

Suter became the first American ever to earn the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie in 1986 after amassing 68 points (18-50) in 80 regular-season games. That season, he helped the Flames advance all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals before eventually falling to the Montreal Canadiens and also tied an NHL record for most assists by a defenseman in a single game with six against Edmonton. The following year, Suter joined Team USA at the 1987 Canada Cup.

A staple on the Calgary blue line for 10 seasons, Suter set a career high in assists (70) and points (91) during the 1987-88 season and helped lead the Flames to the franchise's only Stanley Cup title one year later in 1989. While at Calgary, Suter represented the United States at the 1991 Canada Cup and the 1992 IIHF Men's World Championship. He was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks in March 1994, where he played through the 1997-98 campaign.

Suter was part of the U.S. squad that won the 1996 World Cup of Hockey after topping Canada in a thrilling best-of-three final series. He also skated for his first U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team at the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan.

Suter, who was selected to play in five NHL All-Star Games, finished his NHL career with the San Jose Sharks, where he played for four seasons (1198-2002).

He retired having played in 1,145 games and accumulating 844 points (203-641), the fourth most by any American defenseman. Just before retiring, Suter helped Team USA capture the silver medal at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.