Martin St. Louis has decided to play tonight. A day following the terrible news that his Mom France passed away at age 63, St. Louis and his Dad agreed that she would want him to play. When the Rangers face the Penguins for Game 5 staring at elimination, St. Louis will be playing with a heavy heart.

“We found out (Thursday) when we arrived in Pitt that Marty’s mom had passed away, and from there we obviously sent him back home to Montreal,” coach Alain Vigneault told a group of reporters at a press conference.

“It was obviously a very, very quiet bus ride from the airport to the hotel, and I talked to Marty last night, texted back and forth this morning, and he decided to come back and play. I think that says a lot about him, but I think that says a lot about his teammates, that he’d want to be here and play tonight. So he’s here, and we’re gonna play.”

There’s not much else to add. It says a lot about St. Louis’ character that he wants to play. This is a very difficult time for him and his family. It also might help explain why he’s struggled. There’s no way his mind could’ve been focused on hockey. He is a prideful man who deserves the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes, we forget that these people are human beings. As Vigneault noted, some things are more important than hockey. I can only imagine what he’s going through. Condolences go out to St. Louis and his family.

It’ll be interesting to see how he and the team respond. Faced with adversity, it should bring them closer together. Hopefully, they can turn the sad news into something inspiring.