Could Martin St. Louis Pry Steven Stamkos Out Of Nashville?

Back in the day, Martin St. Louis was a mentor to young phenom Steven Stamkos, helping shape the star into a superstar.

Marty eventually departed the Tampa Bay Lightning organization and played briefly for the New York Rangers before retiring, while Stamkos became the heart and soul of the Bolts' attack and dressing room. They became the nearest thing to a dynasty that anybody has seen since the 1980s, and Stamkos proudly wore the 'C' on his sweater.

Now 35 years old, Stamkos is a grizzled veteran, who is coming off a decent season, though the Predators didn't have much of a successful year at all. Stamkos' resumé features two Stanley Cups and two Rocket Richard Trophies, so he would be a tremendous addition for Kent Hughes.

The thing is, what does it take to get Stamkos to go to Montreal, if he wants to right the ship in Nashville with the Predators, then the luster of wearing the blue, red and white Canadiens sweater might not be so interesting to him.

For Marty he and Stammer know each other quite well, and both are cerebral hockey minds and players. If Marty could convince Stamkos to come to Montreal, they would massively solve their second-line center problem.

Ivan Demidov and Patrik Laine could truly take off with an established center between them on the second line, and the Canadiens could do a lot worse than a four-time 90-plus point scorer. Stamkos has loads of experience from captaining and centering the top line of Tampa's Stanley Cup-winning teams.

Martin St. Louis can ask for plenty of things, and Stamkos answers all of them, while fitting the window perfectly for the Canadiens, who have Michael Hage coming through the ranks. Hage is one season away for sure, and Stamkos is ready to win now, he is approaching 40, and conceivably the mentality is to get another ring before he sails off into the sunset.

The Canadiens are in win-now mode, and adding the talent to load up for the 2025-2026 season will be the story of the upcoming offseason. Hughes and Gorton will be busy working the phones, and the top prospects will be training to make an impression at Canadiens camp in mid to late September.

Stamkos can be a mentor to a young star, Demidov, and he can cover for Laine's defensive shortcomings. The line would be uber-competitive, and would shock a lot of opponents out of the gate if they develop some chemistry before the season starts.

Demidov is fresh-faced, and Laine hasn't won anything yet. Stamkos is the guy to glue to those two players together and let things play out.

How about that, Kent?