Talk of the town

Just before Martin St. Louis goes to work in the morning, he kisses his wife Heather softly on the cheek. Then he kisses her belly.

The couple, married three years, is are expecting its their first child on June 27. At any other time, the anticipation of becoming a father would consume St. Louis. But something else is fighting for his attention.

The Lightning is in the playoffs. And though Tampa Bay's star right wing tries to keep his icy work and the warmth of his home life separate, it is not always possible.

"It's two different worlds, and sometimes, that's tough," St. Louis said. "All I think about is hockey. I'm very excited about having a baby, but my mind right now is taking up a lot of space with the playoffs."

Still, there always is room, and time, for what's important. There are trips to the store to buy baby furniture, and the occasional realization that "I'm going to look at things differently" when the baby is born.

And there are those magic moments when St. Louis touches Heather's belly and feels their baby move.

"It's moving in there. There's something alive in there. The next thing you know, we're going to have a family," St. Louis said. "These are the precious moments of your life. So far, I can say this is a year I'm going to remember for having a baby and because it's the best time of my professional life. It's incredible."

From a professional standpoint, it can't get much better than what St. Louis, 27, accomplished during the Lightning's East quarterfinal victory against over the Capitals.

He had five goals and four assists in six games. And his three consecutive winning goals made him the first player to do that in a series since Pittsburgh's Kevin Stevens in the 1991 division final against the Capitals.

Add a 33-goal regular season, an All-Star appearance and a speedy, scrappy style made more noticeable because he is 5 feet 9, and you've got a fan favorite.

St. Louis' fan mail is way up, and the St. Pete Times Forum percolates when he churns with the puck through the neutral zone. Is it any wonder, then, that as the Devils prepared to face the Lightning in the conference semifinals that begin today at Continental Airlines Arena, they focused on the native of Laval, Quebec.

"He challenges everyone with the puck," Devils coach Pat Burns said. "He'll go wide on you. He'll beat you one on one. He'll throw speed at you. He's an energy player."

"He's very hard to hit," New Jersey defenseman Scott Stevens said. "He's shifty with a lot of speed. You have to keep good position on him. You have to keep him to the side and funnel him into the corners. He's had a great year. I can't say enough about the guy."

Neither can Nick Polano.

As director of player personnel for the Flames, Polano, now a pro scout with the Senators, spotted St. Louis playing for Cleveland of the International Hockey League.

"A lot of people neglected him because of his size, but I could see how strong he was. And he had so much desire and skill," he said. "I said, 'If this guy can't play in the NHL, I know a lot of people who won't play.' I knew this guy was special."

Polano wrote "relentless determination" on St. Louis' scouting report and convinced Calgary general manager Al Coates to sign him in February 1998 even though the organization's payroll was at its limit.

Every salary negotiation should be this easy.

Undrafted after an All-America career at the University of Vermont, St. Louis was making $75,000 with Cleveland. The Flames offered a two-way contract that would pay $45,000 if St. Louis played in the minors.

"I said, 'There's no way this kid will sign with us,' " Polano said.

Wrong.

"It was a big pay cut, but it's not like you wouldn't be able to make it back," St. Louis said. "I would still be able to pay my bills. For me, it was more about chasing a dream."

The dream's biggest detour came in April 2000, when Polano, Coates and Flames coach Brian Sutter were fired and St. Louis lost his biggest boosters in the organization. New GM Craig Button cleaned house, and St. Louis was let go that summer because he was too small.

St. Louis, signed in July 2000 by then-Lightning GM Rick Dudley to a two-year, $540,000 contract, said he has no hard feelings toward Button. But he did mention that Button, fired April 11, "is gone, too."

St. Louis, now in the first year of a two-year, $2.5-million contract, appears here to stay.

"He comes to play hard, and everybody admires that," Lightning center Tim Taylor said. "When you know a guy is out there playing his heart out and doing anything for the team, you want to play that much harder yourself for him as well."

"It's fun when you see yourself score goals," St. Louis said. "But I look around the locker room and say, 'Damn right, boys. Everybody who wrote us off, we proved them wrong.' I'm not just looking at myself to say, 'Good job, Marty.' Most of the guys who are here have been here for awhile. We're a close group, and we've done it together."

St. Louis has a similar partnership at home. He knows the playoffs have made him less available to his wife during a stressful time.

So Heather goes to games -- 38 of 41 in the regular season, she figured -- cheers when her husband scores and sings along when Louie, Louie blasts over the Times Forum PA system.

"I love that Louie, Louie," she said. "It's so cool."

"She's been great," St. Louis said. "She hasn't been needy. She understands the magnitude of this time of my career. She knows I'm going to be there when the baby comes. I try to be there when I can."

Such as in the morning, when he gives her a pair of kisses.