Imagine being a kid and turning down a chance to go to Walt Disney World. No way, right? Well, that was exactly what Ryan St. Louis and his younger brothers, Lucas and Mason, once did. They had good reason, though. The alternative was skating at St. Pete Times Forum, now called Amalie Arena, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Their father, Martin, spent 13 of his 16 National Hockey League seasons as a Lightning right wing in a playing career that included winning the Stanley Cup in 2004 and being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018.
“My dad had a weekend off, and we chose to skate at the Lightning arena almost every time it was offered,” remembered Ryan, now 17 years old. “Growing up around the game is different and with that childhood it meant not wanting to go to Walt Disney World, where most other kids would want to go.”
