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Ryan Carter’s Solid Play Key to the Wild’s Success

By Alex Trembley

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With all the hype surrounding the signing of Thomas Vanek in the off-season, the addition of local boy Ryan Carter seemed to go overlooked as a depth signing. Now, Carter can’t be overlooked as a big part of the Wild’s success on offense and the penalty kill. Carter’s game is top-notch lately, and it’s time we took notice as Wild fans.

Ryan Carter had a stellar week, good enough to earn him GPW’s second star with 2 goals, 2 assists, and 7 hits.

 Ryan Carter: Hometown Boy

Born and raised in White Bear Lake, Minnesota; Carter played junior hockey for the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL before spending two seasons at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Never a prolific scorer, Ryan Carter went undrafted by the NHL but signed a 2-year entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks, where he won a Stanley Cup in 2007.

Bouncing around the league a few years, Carter landed with Zach Parise and the New Jersey Devils. Carter came alive in the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs, scoring 7 points in New Jersey’s run to the finals.

After spending training camp with the Devils, Carter was released and signed a one year two-way contract with our beloved Minnesota Wild. Here’s what Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher had to say about his signing, per Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune

"“In the last couple days, talking to Mike [Yeo] and the coaching staff, they felt strongly that Ryan would be an upgrade. He has a lot of experience. He brings versatility to a club, he kills penalties, he shoots the puck, he has had playoff success. He brings good depth to a team and different dimensions to the bottom six and provides the coaches more options in terms of building rosters from game to game.”"

Season to Date:

Now with 16 regular-season games in a Wild sweater, Carter has earned 9 points (2G-7A) while averaging just 9:26 of ice time. Ryan Suter and Charlie Coyle are both off to 9 points starts as well, but Suter seemingly never leaves the ice, and Coyle is a top-6 forward.

Spending nearly the entire middle frame of the Winnipeg game on Sunday shorthanded, Carter got a chance to shine as the Wild allowed zero power play goals on a staggering 8 chances for the Winnipeg Jets.

Coming from our friends at Hockey-reference.com,  Carter is on pace for a career high 11 goals and 48 points if he keeps this production up. His current 0.56 points per game is more than double his career average.

Ryan Carter wasn’t brought here to score points, folks. He’s here to be responsible with the puck and kill penalties. In doing both of those things, Carter is making chances for his line mates and bringing a refreshing energy to the Minnesota Wild.

Carter’s devensive accolades include 25 hits, 6 blocked shots and three takeaways. Amazingly, he’s only been credited with one giveaway. He’s also 7th on the team in face-off percentage, winning 41.5%

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Through 16 games, Carter is a +4 but has some possession stats to be desired. His 45.78% Corsi for is his lowest since the 2011-2012 season.

Looking ahead:

There’s no doubt that Ryan Carter is an invaluable member of the Minnesota Wild, especially with injuries to Matt Cooke and a depleted blue line thanks to Mumps and injuries.

Yeah, But Will it Last?

I get it, We’re not even 20 games in to the season. Carter’s numbers may also be a product of playing with Jason Zucker and Justin Fontaine at times. It’s undeniable the Zucker and Fontaine are offensive contributors that can pump up the numbers of anybody they play with. For a one-year deal, the Wild have themselves a great player for a bargain price.

Carter is on pace to break a career high in goals, assists, and points. I’m sure he’ll cool off, but for a guy that only had 10 points in 62 games last season, I’m quite happy with his play.

So Wild Fans, Who’s been the better off-season addition so far? Thomas Vanek or Ryan Carter?

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