part of the game and that you don't have any control over them. When it happens, it's a shock. It just blows me away." Chicago Blackhawks Suter's tenure with the Whalers lasted only one day, as Hartford immediately traded him to the Chicago Blackhawks (along with Randy Cunneyworth and a draft pick) in exchange for František Kučera and Jocelyn Lemieux. Suter appeared in 16 regular season games with the Blackhawks, finishing the season with 41 games played and 18 points combined between Calgary and Chicago. He quickly established a place alongside Chris Chelios as the team's top defensive pair. In his first full season in Chicago, Suter was looked upon to serve as a team leader and played a key role with the team's power play. He appeared in all 48 games of the lockout-shortened 1994–95 season, scoring 37 points, but missed several playoff games after suffering a broken hand against the Vancouver Canucks. With 67 points in 1995–96, Suter was named to an All-Star team for the fifth time, but a knee injury prevented him from participating in the contest. The 1996–97 season was one of frustration for Suter, as he battled a season-long slump that saw him go 26 games without scoring goal at one point early in the season, then 21 games without a point late. He finished with 28 points, compared to an average of 69 in his previous nine campaigns. In the final year of his contract with Chicago, Suter improved to 42 points in 1997–98. When attempts to negotiate a new deal during the season failed, the team publicly shopped his playing rights around the NHL late in the season but failed to complete a trade. Chicago's best contract offer was a two-year proposal that would have paid Suter $1.85 million per season. Unable to reach terms following the season, the Blackhawks quietly traded his negotiating rights to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a ninth-round pick a few days before he would have become an unrestricted free agent. He subsequently signed a three-year, $10 million contract with San Jose. San Jose Sharks Suter played only one game for the Sharks in the 1998–99 season, missing virtually the entire campaign after a microbe in his triceps caused an infection that required three surgeries to alleviate. During treatment, doctors also discovered a hole in his heart that required another surgery to correct. At age