It looks like Renaud Lavoie's report from yesterday was right. Today Hockey Canada announced that Tampa Bay Lightning forward Marty St. Louis will replace injured Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos on Canada's Sochi roster. It's a great day for Marty, and for everyone in Bolts Nation.
After being excluded from the initial roster, St. Louis went on a tear in his games with the Lightning. He produced at a high level, and led his team in a way that is nothing short of inspiring. I don't think you'll find anyone around the hockey world who doesn't believe that Marty deserves to be in Sochi.
This will be St. Louis's second Olympic tournament; he participated in the 2006 games in Italy. In addition to that international experience, St. Louis has won a World Cup of Hockey and two silver medals at the World Championships. In Marty St. Louis, Canada is taking a player with a great deal of international experience.
In his comments following the announcement, St. Louis was relatively reserved. It's clear that he's disappointed that his linemate and friend Steven Stamkos won't be able to realize the Olympic dream this time around. At the same time, it was abundantly clear that St. Louis is excited about this opportunity. When asked if being named to the team today takes some of the original sting away, he responded with "I don't know."
Perhaps the best quote from St. Louis was in reference to the snub and how this opportunity came about.
"I feel like my whole career has been a back-door entrance. This is no different. It's a big opportunity and I'm glad to be there."
The Lightning captain and now two-time Olympian can't leave for Sochi quite yet, however, as his NHL team still has some work to do. Tonight, the Bolts will take on the Toronto Maple Leafs. Tampa dropped a 3-2 decision to the Leafs just over a week ago, so you know they'll be looking to show up tonight. It's a big divisional game against a divisional opponent.
I'll be around tonight during game time.
As always, thanks for reading.