When Marty St. Louis returns to Tampa to finish out his 2013-14 campaign with the Lightning, he will do so with a medal hanging around his neck. As a member of Team Canada, St. Louis will play for Gold on Sunday versus Team Sweden. The worst case scenario, if you can call it that, is that he returns to Tampa with Silver.
Canadian hockey fans will remember St. Louis as a member of Canada’s squad that fell flat back in 2006. He’s been given a shot at redemption. While I don’t expect that he’ll get much (read: any) playing time on Sunday, it’s hard not to be happy for him. This is a player who has battled through obstacle after obstacle and built one hell of a career. Adding an Olympic medal to an already impressive resume will only make St. Louis’s page in the history books that much more stunning.
With all that in mind, it’s my view that Marty St. Louis will be a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame when his career finally comes to an end. After reading the following list of his accomplishments, have your say in the poll at the bottom of the page.
Marty St. Louis…
…has played in the NHL all-star game six times. …has won the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s leading point scorer twice. …has won the Ted Lindsay Award as the league's most valuable player chosen by players. …has won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league’s most valuable player. …has won the Lady Byng three times as the league's most gentlemanly player. …is an Olympic medalist*. ...is a two-time Silver medalist at the World Championships. ...is a World Cup of Hockey champion. …is a Stanley Cup champion.
Take a look at that resume. For any player, let alone an undrafted player, it’s more than remarkable. I consider myself incredibly lucky; I’ve had the privilege of watching Marty St. Louis suit up for many years. You can bet that I’ll be cheering for him on Sunday when he and his Canadian teammates take to the ice. I want nothing more than to see one of the greatest players in hockey history take home the Gold medal.
As always, thanks for reading.
*I’ll be back with regular Lightning coverage (and full length blogs) when the Lightning season starts up again.