Martin St. Louis
A "small" player by NHL standards at 5-foot-9, Martin St. Louis was born in Laval, Quebect, and has played six seasons as of the 2006-07 NHL season for the Tampa Bay Lightning and had previously played for the Calgary Flames. On the Flames, St. Louis spent most of his time putting up numbers in the minors. He was released by GM Craig Button and signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was on pace to have a career year in the 2001-02 when his season ended prematurely due to a broken leg. His best season was in 2003-04 when he led the NHL in scoring with 94 points. He scored an overtime goal in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals, helping the Tampa Bay Lightning defeat the Calgary Flames for the Stanley Cup. St. Louis won both the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Lester B. Pearson Award. He became the first player since Wayne Gretzky in 1987, and only the eighth in NHL history, to win the Art Ross Trophy, the Stanley Cup and the Hart Memorial Trophy all in one season. In August of 2005, Martin St. Louis signed a six-year deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning worth $31.5 million. He wears number 26 to pay tribute to his childhood hero, diminutive former Montreal Canadiens star Mats Näslund. During the 2004-05 NHL lockout he played for the Swiss team HC Lausanne. In the 2006-2007 NHL season St. Louis recorded a personal high of 102 points (43 goals, 59 assists). St. Louis has been a little inconsistent throughout his career, having one great season followed by an average season. He bounced back in the 2006-2007 season for his personal high, but the 2005-2006 season was considered a disappointment by his lofty standards. Still one of the best small players to ever lace the skates, expect St. Louis to continue to use his speed and his gritty determination to create chances for himself long into an prosperous NHL career.
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