Martin St. Louis is honored as the league's best by the players as well as the writers association.
By DAMIAN CRISTODERO
Published June 11, 2004
TORONTO - Martin St. Louis did not want to speak much about the future. There was enough for him to talk about and think about in the present.
There were lights overhead, cameras in his face and questions coming from every angle.
The Lightning wing capped a remarkable season Thursday night when he received the Hart Trophy and Lester B. Pearson Award as the league's most valuable player.
He was the first to win both (the Hart is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association, the Pearson by the players) since Colorado's Joe Sakic in 2001.
He also was the first Lightning player named a first-team All-Star. And he was given the Art Ross Trophy as well, for leading the league in points.
"It hasn't really sunk in yet," St. Louis said. "The Cup is the most important trophy for me, but I'm flattered to win these awards today. Sometime over the summer as we slow down, we'll realize what happened this year."
What happened was St. Louis, who led the Lightning with 38 goals, led the league with 94 points and was tied for the league lead with 56 assists and at plus-35, set himself up for what can be a very lucrative offseason.
St. Louis, 29 on June 18, likely will get a huge pay increase when his new contract is negotiated over the summer. The native of Laval, Quebec, made $1.5-million last season. Speculation is he will make about $5-million next season.
And St. Louis' agent, Lewis Gross, said he has fielded "numerous" offers from "national companies and some local as well" interested in St. Louis doing commercial endorsements.
"It's been tremendous," Gross said. "There have been some big companies that have stepped up. I think they recognize not only what he has accomplished but what kind of kid he is. He's become a role model for a lot of kids. I have a son that's not very big, and of all the players I represent, Martin's picture is all over his wall.
"He's showed that if you have heart and you work at something ... I think a lot of companies have kind of grabbed on to that."
As for St. Louis' new contract, which runs out June 30 after two years and $2.5-million, Gross said, "Whether it gets done quickly or not, I don't know. But I'm sure we'll be talking pretty quickly. I know (general manager) Jay Feaster and I have a good working relationship. We both want to get Martin done. Hopefully, that will happen."
"All that stuff will take care of itself," St. Louis said. "I'm still working out what I'm going to do with my day with the Cup."
St. Louis' day with his trophies started out in the Great Hall of the Hockey Hall of Fame, where the legendary Ted Lindsay called his name as the Pearson winner ahead of Colorado captain Joe Sakic and Florida goalie Roberto Luongo.
It was a poignant moment as Lindsay, similar in height to St. Louis' 5 feet 8, said, "I hope the scouts take another look. You don't need to be 6-2 to 6-5. You can be 5-9, have lots of heart and lots of guts, and that's what this guy has."
"He's an exciting player," Sakic said. "Something the league can build around."
St. Louis, who brought 16 family members to the ceremony, including son Ryan, who will turn 1 on Sunday, was humbled.
"Besides the Stanley Cup, this is the trophy I will cherish for the rest of my life," St. Louis said, "because it's voted on by the people who play against you."
After being awarded the Hart Trophy and finishing third for the Lady Byng, given for sportsmanship, and fourth for the Selke, given to the best defensive forward, St. Louis was asked how it felt to be the league's best player.
"I don't know if it means I'm the best player in the NHL," he said. "You can't do it without the rest of your team. I had a chance to play with two great centers. You go from (Vinny) Lecavalier to (Brad) Richards to Lecavalier. How lucky can you be?"
"I couldn't have done it alone. It was 20 guys playing like MVPs."
