Martin St. Louis
Does size matter in the eyes of Martin St.Louis? He is one of the smallest NHL players ever to play the game.
Does that stop him? Not at all, Martin St.Louis was born June 18, 1975 in Laval, Quebec, since lacing up his first pair of skates when he was just three. Martin says he had the biggest joy of gliding and speeding down the local pond and once he got older all he wanted to do was play hockey. When the weather got warm he and his friends went to the streets and played road apple. Martin's small size was passed on from his father (Normand) who stands 5-6 while he himself is at 5-9. The town was hockey crazed, with all of the ice time you could want.
He did odd jobs around his father’s lumber mill, and eventually became a postman as an adult. Somewhat of a handyman, Normand renovated houses, too. Martin liked tagging along with his dad on these jobs, by the time he reached the Bantam level, he had developed into a quick and talented playmaker who saw openings and opportunities where others did not. He dreamed of making it to the NHL. Bantam hockey was a challenge for Martin, but rather than shying away from the contact, he often fought it out. He counted Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux among his favorite players. But his favorite was Mats Naslund, the Swedish-born player who played for the Canadiens. Going undrafted and playing college hockey for Vermont he was finally reconized going on to play 4 years with Vermont, 1 year with Clevland Lumber Jacks, 2 years with Saint John Flames, 2 years with the Calgary Flames, 1 year with HC Lausanne of the Swiss National League A and 12 years with Tampa Bay Lightning.
Internationally, St. Louis has played with Team Canada on four occasions. He was a member of the team that
won the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, and played in the 2006 Winter Olympics. He won the silver medal twice in
the World championships and was named a tournament all-star after leading the 2009 event in scoring with 15 points.
Martin is curently making 5.5 million dollars, he is married to Heather Caragol and has 3 kids. He lives in Tampa Florida USA.