BRANDON - Chris Clark knew Martin St. Louis well enough from chasing him around for three seasons in college to know he could play professionally.
He knew him well enough as a teammate at Calgary's Saint John AHL affiliate to know he could play in the NHL.
Calgary never gave St. Louis that chance, releasing him in the summer of 2000. Now Clark, a left wing, and his Flames have to deal with the league's leading scorer and likely Hart Trophy winner when the Stanley Cup final begins tonight at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa.
Clark, whose Clarkson (N.Y.) team competed against St. Louis' Vermont squad in the Eastern College Athletic Conference, had preconceived notions about the record-setting wing when he arrived at Saint John half a season after St. Louis in 1998.
The notions soon changed, and an appreciation and friendship followed.
"From how he played in college and the success he had, I figured he'd be a cocky guy," Clark said. "But he was down to earth, a regular guy."
Not when it came to the game. St. Louis led Saint John in goals (28) and points (62) in 1998-99.
"We knew he was too good for the minors, way too good," Clark said. "But Calgary at the time just didn't find a position for him."
St. Louis, discounted because of his 5-foot-9 frame, responded to demotions from Calgary with the type of chip-on-shoulder determination that made him the NHL scoring champion this season with 94 points.
"If he was sent back down, he'd come back and he'd score two, three points a night, just to show them he didn't belong there," Clark said, "that either they'd have to give him a chance in Calgary or someplace else. He always had to overcome the too-small thing or the college thing. I think he took it personally a little bit."
Flames defenseman Robyn Regehr, who with Clark and wing Jarome Iginla played with St. Louis, said all he needed was an extended opportunity, one then-general manager Al Coates never offered.
"He put up big numbers everywhere he went, including the AHL," Regehr said. "But he was a fourth-line guy and never got the right ice time. It's hard to put up the numbers that way."
Flames center Craig Conroy, then playing for the Blues, was playing with St. Louis in John LeClair's charity golf tournament with their mutual agent when St. Louis got the news he had been released by Calgary in July 2000.
"I remember him saying, "Calgary just released me,' " Conroy said. "He just wanted to go somewhere, and they were just going to try and find a team that would give him a chance. He was excited. He knew it would be a fresh start."
Four seasons later St. Louis has the chance to enact revenge, but he has taken pains to avoid that story line.
"It's a different team," he said. "That's past. I'm happy for them."
The Flames could dream of a St. Louis-Iginla line considering the 167 points the players combined for this regular season, but the twists of hockey luck and business make that a fruitless venture. Iginla, after all, came over as a prospect in a trade from Dallas in 1995. Goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff came from San Jose, the team the Flames eliminated in the Western Conference final.
Goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere was traded by Calgary for a second-round draft pick, then won the Conn Smythe award last year by taking Anaheim to the Stanley Cup final.
"You can't think that way," Regehr said. "It's part of hockey. Just try to be happy for them."
Get a look at the Stanley Cup
TODAY: Busch Gardens, at the corner of Busch Boulevard and 40th Street, Tampa, 4-6 p.m.
WEDNESDAY: BayWalk, 125 Second Ave. N, St. Petersburg, noon-2 p.m.
