When we don’t post for a few days, it’s safe to say we’re either a) really busy or b) laughing so hysterically over the cat face in #21 of 35 Greatest Animal Photobombers of All Time that we can’t type.  Yet through our tears, we see big events are happening.

Tonight, the man we call Squishy will play in his 1,000th NHL game.

Yes, we said Squishy.

If you played in an NHL game every single day, it would take 2 years, 9 months and 27 days to reach 1,000.   That’s from tonight straight through until September 14, 2016.  If you played in each of 84 regular season games, it would take nearly 12 NHL seasons to hit the mark.

In Martin St. Louis’ case, it took 15 full and partial-NHL seasons.  Not even 300 players have hit the 1,000 game mark [link] and let’s be honest, many who do have left their best production days behind.

Not Marty.  Last season, St. Louis won the Art Ross Trophy.

Look who he beat.  Look at his projected point total in a non-lockout season.  LOOK AT HIS FACE!  No wait, look at his legs.

You certainly wouldn’t be the only one, according to Google.

I mean…

I digress.  At 38 years old, Marty currently has 20 points in 20 games.  The Lightning lead the Eastern Conference.  It remains to be seen what happens to the Bolts sans Stamkos, but never doubt that Martin St. Louis is the backbone of that team.

To celebrate this milestone, we’ll give you just 10 of the 1000 reasons that we have loved Marty for so long.

10) He’s older than we are – and when you get to our age you need role models. Basically we’re down to Sophia Loren, Meryl Streep and Marty St. Louis.

9) He gets better looking every year.  Please let this happen to us.

8) He’s shorter than we are.  (Well, he’s shorter than Chuck.  He’s exactly the size and weight as me + a suitcase.)  It never, ever stood in his way.

7) He once had a double root canal after a playoff game and was in the lineup two nights later, no problem. [link]

6) He was probably the only person who didn’t facepalm when The Real Housewives of What is Your Demographic NHL, I Do Not Understand This Tie-In mispronounced his name at the NHL Awards.  Then he read his acceptance speech off his Blackberry.

5) His dad-ness.  Watch this video.

4) The advice we assume he gives Stamkos on all aspects of life.

3) The way he starts a party…

… and the way it ends.

2) This had to make the list somewhere:

 

1)  Of course the best thing about Marty is the way he plays the game.

 

Check out Squishy’s career stats and their game tonight vs. LA if you can stay up that late.  Maybe the Real Housewives will be there to celebrate another of Marty’s big achievements.

Tags: Martin St. Louis, tampa bay lightning