This is neither about the past in Tampa Bay nor the future that is so uncertain. This is simply about the present for Marty St. Louis, and how much the 39-year-old winger will be able to contribute to the Rangers in the Eastern Conference final against the Lightning.
Nostalgia can wait, and so must sentiment. But if St. Louis is unable to elevate his game dramatically over where it was for much of the last round against the Capitals, then Alain Vigneault won’t have the luxury of waiting very long before replacing the winger with J.T. Miller on the top-gun unit with Derick Brassard and Rick Nash, as the coach did over the final 10:03 of regulation in Game 7 against Washington.
Though the decision to bench the slam-dunk future Hall of Famer must have been one of the most difficult — if not the most difficult — call Vigneault has had to make (and may have to make again) since taking over behind the New York bench two years ago, the coach framed it matter-of-factly when asked about it following Friday’s practice.
Of course, when it comes playoff time, Vigneault wouldn’t say cheese if he had a mouthful.
“Like I’ve done through the series and different games, I’m going to do what I feel is best for the group and gives us the best chance to win,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who it is or who we’re playing.”
If the NHL were filled with betting men, every one of them would have gone broke many times over betting against St. Louis, one of the greatest and most inspirational players of this generation. From the time he came out of the University of Vermont as an undrafted player in 1998 who couldn’t even get a two-way NHL contract before having to prove himself on an AHL deal in Cleveland, St. Louis has used doubts and skepticism as fuel.
Would that he can do so again. Would that he can do so one more time for the Rangers, who desperately need St. Louis to produce in the absence of Mats Zuccarello, for it is folly to believe the Blueshirts can advance to their second straight Cup final generating the two-goals-per-game they have through the first two rounds.
Would that he can chin up to the bar he always has set so high for himself. Would that St. Louis can confound the skeptics this one more time before confronting the unknown that lies ahead at the effectively concurrent conclusion of the playoffs and of his contract.
You know, St. Louis contributed far more last year than the inspirational wave the Rangers rode to the Cup final in the wake of his mother’s passing during the second round. The winger led the club with eight goals during the 2014 playoffs, getting the overtime winner in Game 4 of the conference finals against Montreal and the 2-0 goal that ultimately proved to be the winner in Game 4 of the final against Los Angeles.
Then this season, St. Louis didn’t just provide leadership and an example for his younger teammates. He was tied as the club’s second-leading goal scorer with Chris Kreider, their 21 goals exceeded by only Rick Nash’s 42.
But now, this player who always has risen the occasion, just hasn’t been able to finish, no goals in 12 games, with the chances becoming fewer and farther between. There were a pair of glorious opportunities in Game 5 against the Capitals, but not much beyond that against a team that outmuscled him in puck battles and all but eliminated his time and space.
Finally, when pushes came to shoves off the puck, and when the Brassard line couldn’t generate a forecheck, Vigneault changed the dynamic by going to Miller. Thus, St. Louis was benched in a playoff game for the first time in his career.
“Coaches make decisions at key times in the game for whatever reason, and I’ve never liked being on the bench at certain times, but that’s reality,” St. Louis said Friday. “If I liked it, I don’t think I’d be here today. Nobody likes that.
“Right now I’m getting focused on getting one in and helping my team win. I’m not too worried about what happened. I trust A.V.’s judgement.”
The deal in which St. Louis came to the Rangers at the 2014 deadline after requesting/demanding a trade when Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman did not originally select the winger for the 2014 Canadian Olympic team over which he also presided, only can be judged in the future.
With the Blueshirts having yielded a pair of first-rounders and Ryan Callahan while getting No. 26 and a second-rounder, the only realistic way for this trade ultimately to be judged in New York GM Glen Sather’s favor is by the Rangers winning the Stanley Cup with St. Louis on the roster.
Without a doubt, though, the Rangers gave up potentially a huge chunk of their future to get a player whose past in Tampa Bay was all glory. Again: neither his past nor the Rangers’ future matters at this moment.
“It’s not time to reflect on it,” St. Louis said of his 13 years wearing the Bolt. “It’s time to play playoff hockey.”
It’s time for St. Louis to produce.
For that, there is no time like the present.