Sharks’ Suter Discloses He Had Heart Surgery

San Jose defenseman Gary Suter--remember him?--said for the first time last week that he underwent heart surgery after last season.

Suter missed all but one game in 1998-99 because of a staph infection that ruined two elbow surgeries.

Medical tests early last season also revealed an extra node that raised Suter’s heart rate to dangerous levels.

The procedure was performed by Roger Winkle, a heart specialist at Stanford University Hospital, after the season. Suter kept it quiet until last week.

“I didn’t want people to think I was a basket case,” he told the Contra Costa Times. “It wasn’t life-threatening, but there is risk in every surgery.”

Suter’s hit on Paul Kariya on Feb. 1, 1998, gave the Duck captain a concussion that sidelined him for the Nagano Olympics and the final 28 games of the NHL season.

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Pierre Gauthier, Duck president and general manager, sat in the stands Friday at the Arrowhead Pond and said he noticed a difference in the energy level in the arena.

Gauthier believed the third sellout of 17,174 had an impact on the Ducks’ play, particularly when they rallied for a 3-3 tie in the third period against the Colorado Avalanche.

“Our building is good when it’s full,” Gauthier said. “If you ask the players, they’ll say it helps them.”

Asked what it will take to attract sellouts as routinely as the Ducks did several seasons ago, Gauthier said, “A three-letter word: win. That’s all the people want.”

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Gauthier is a big fan of the NHL’s four-on-four format for the five-minute overtime period.

“I’ve seen fans at some games actually standing through the overtime,” he said. “The teams have finally figured out how to play it. The mind-set has changed. You’ve got nothing to lose, only something to gain. It’s more wide open.”