Martin St-Louis on Steven Stamkos: he’ll be glad he got a fresh start

Towards the end of his playing career, Martin St-Louis left the Tampa Bay Lightning. An Olympic-related squabble with Steve Yzerman led to his request to leave for the Rangers.

Yzerman accepted his request and sent the Quebecer to finish his career in New York.

Does this make St-Louis someone who no longer loves the Lightning? No. He has a lot of respect for the way things are done in Florida and has enjoyed his life there.

But he’s in a good position to know that a change of scenery at the end of a career, after years in the same place, can sometimes be a good thing.

And that brings us to Steven Stamkos.

St-Louis is well placed to talk about Tampa and Stamkos. He knows what it’s like to become a Lightning legend and then move on to another NHL team.

And according to the Quebecer, Stamkos will be happy to have made the move to Nashville to experience something different. That’s what the Habs pilot said on the heels of a charity event, as reported by the NHL website, via the pen of Dan Rosen.

St. Louis sees bright side for Stamkos in leaving Lightning for Predatorshttps://t.co/vW4giFteqR

– NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) July 26, 2024

Obviously, the circumstances are different, since St-Louis has requested a trade, while Stamkos was denied the contract he clearly wanted to sign in Tampa Bay.

We know that #91 is hurting, but he’s going to experience something different in Nashville, and he’ll have the chance to win.

Remember that many people wanted to see St-Louis and Vincent Lecavalier convince Stamkos to sign in Montreal. That didn’t happen, but St-Louis has been talking to Stamkos since July 1 to share his experience of 2014, when he moved from Tampa Bay to New York.

This will undoubtedly help Stamkos make the transition more smoothly.

Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes must hope that Martin St-Louis doesn’t get too bored with Montreal and feel the need to go elsewhere too quickly after seeing the coach say that changing teams as a player had a positive effect on his career.

But that’s another debate.

Overtime

– Really?

Ross Atkins’ recipe, which could keep his job, isn’t changing. https://t.co/4v75zmHIe8

– Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) July 26, 2024

– Will the Lightning’s power play suffer with Steven Stamkos gone?[HF]

– Formidable…

Kevin Blue: There was an attempt to use a drone by the men’s team during the Copa America.

– Alexandre Pratt (@alexandrepratt) July 26, 2024

– Today’s the day.

Opening ceremony | Last lap for the Olympic flame https://t.co/Zy6gPV5lkq

– La Presse Sports (@LaPresse_Sports) July 26, 2024