Ryan Suter belongs with the Minnesota Wild, not the Detroit Red Wings. The offer from both teams was similar, but the way Suter lives off the ice, he was always more suited to Minnesota than Detroit.

Suter grew up on a farm with his NHL-star-filled family, and he still lives on a farm in Madison, Wis. In fact, that’s where he was this week while he was fielding offers from various NHL teams.

In the end, both the Red Wings and Wild made similar offers. The Wings wanted to give him $90 million over 13 years, at the latest report, and the offer he accepted from Minnesota was just a bit more lucrative—$98 million over 13 years.

The notion that an NHL veteran would hold out over $8 million spread over 13 years is nonsense. Roughly $600,000 a year is chump change to somebody who can command the type of money Suter was offered from multiple parties.

So what was it that attracted him to Minnesota over Detroit?

Well, take a look at where Suter—and Zach Parise, who also just signed with the Wild for the same exact amount of money—come from. Both are Midwesterners, and both are getting to the point where they have to figure out where they want to live for a while.

Justin Bourne of The Score puts it well:

First off, Zach Parise is just about the nicest mid-western kid you could ever meet. He’s savvy enough to handle the east coast if need be, but he’s from Minny, and his family is from Minny. He’s engaged to be married, and had to make the decision where to throw down serious roots, and figure out where he wants to raise his family. I’m also willing to bet his lady-friend had some input into the decision. Pittsburgh is a fine city and all, but for Zach, Minnesota is home.

Ryan Suter isn’t much different. It’s funny that when all the haggling for his services was taking place, you’d see sentences like “They flew to a private airstrip near….Ryan Suter’s farm in Wisconsin, where he spends his summers.” Oh. That’s the most old-school hockey thing ever. “Welp, the season’s over, back to bailing hay.”

All things considered, both of those guys belong in a place like St. Paul. The life of a hockey player off the ice is always under a microscope, and while some guys like to party and get in trouble, Suter seems to be more of a quiet type.

Given a choice between the Midwest and a big city—such as Detroit, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia—Minnesota just suits his lifestyle better.