Steven Stamkos 'back to business' after season of contract drama

TORONTO – Around this time a year ago contract rumors about Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos flew around Toronto.

Stamkos was in the area for an NHL media tour – one that coincided with some World Cup availability – and at that time it seemed Stamkos was destined for unrestricted free agency. The hometown Toronto Maple Leafs were considered the top candidate for the services of the former 60-goal scorer.

On June 29, the 26-year-old Stamkos decided to forego free agency and sign a deal with the Lightning for eight years at $8.5 million per-year. This ended a crazy year for Stamkos that included questions at almost every stop about his contract, along with a blood clot and a Game 7 Eastern Conference Final loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Stamkos’ only game after the blood clot issue surfaced.

Now healthy and armed with the peace of mind of a new contract, Stamkos is ready to put last year behind him and work towards his goal of delivering a second Stanley Cup to Tampa.

“That’s life right? You never know what’s going to happen. And you play this sport, you never know what’s going to happen, you just have to role with the punches, you have to go through some adverse times in your life and your career and come out stronger,” Stamkos said. “It was a trying year for sure and tried my best to leave all that stuff at home and not let it affect my game or bring it into the locker room. I thought I did the best I could so you learn from that. Looking forward to a year of not necessarily a fresh start but a clean slate in regards to all the distractions if you want to call it that, from last year. And looking forward to this (World Cup of Hockey) tournament and starting the year off strong.”

Stamkos did his best to try to not let it affect the team, but his teammates believe it was an issue at points – for Stamkos more than the Lightning.

Last season he scored 36 goals in 77 games – his lowest full-season total since his rookie year.

“I think as much as you say it’s not going to wear on you, he’s getting asked questions every single day I think now that that’s all done he knows where he’s going to be and I think he’s going to have an even better season than last,” goaltender Ben Bishop said. “I don’t think there was much dialogue going on for the first parts, there wasn’t much going on so there wasn’t much to talk about. He obviously is a well-educated kid, he’s been around a long time and he knew how to handle it and he did a great job. We all knew what was going on but it’s not a distraction. I think we’re all professionals and we realize we have a job to do and worrying about what Stammer’s going to do will hurt the team and hurt yourself.”

Stamkos noted that he was relieved once he made his decision. He knew he would get a fair contract in his next deal but the uncertainty was stressful until his choice was final.

“This summer was one that once we got the contract out of the way that you can kind of just relax and get back to business,” Stamkos said. “It’s something that I wasn’t accustomed to having really never gone through something like that before but now that it’s over with there’s some relief that I can go about and have a regular summer and train and relax and spend time with friends and family and get ready for this tournament so I think after that it was pretty back to normal.”

There were no bitter feelings from his teammates that Stamkos took his time with his contract. They understood this was a big decision for Stamkos as he tried to determine his home for the next eight years.

“He’s making a serious life decision there, where he’s going to spend the next decade of his life and his family and what not so he wanted to check out all his options and not rush into any decisions,” Bishop said. “I think he did a good job of taking his time and I feel his heart was always in Tampa so obviously when I saw him sign definitely glad he’s on your team.”

Said forward Nikita Kucherov, “Obviously he got a deal done for eight more years and each player you know, he knows he’s secure for the next eight years he’s going to feel comfortable and relaxed. I think that’s going to help him in the future and play his best hockey for now. It’s good for him.”

A strong season for Stamkos starts with the World Cup of Hockey. Stamkos was not picked for the 2010 Olympics, and a broken tibia knocked him out of the 2014 Games. He’s had this tournament circled for a while as a chance to represent Canada and deliver a win on an international stage.

“It’s something that when I was announced to the team that I was extremely excited about because of the fact I wasn’t able to make it back for Sochi, so any time you have a tournament where it’s best-on-best you want to be a guy who can be counted on for your country and you never know how many opportunities you’re going to get with all the talent we have in Canada coming up, it’s a tough team to make,” Stankos said. “That was something I was obviously proud about and something I’ve been looking forward to since I got named.”

Bishop’s contract is up at the end of the regular season and he said he has used Stamkos as a guide on how to handle this year as he deals with similar questions moving forward. A new contract for Bishop could be too rich for the Lightning, which means the upcoming year could be Bishop’s last with the organization. Kucherov is still unsigned and Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palata and Jonathan Drouin are up for new contracts next summer.

Bishop said he has learned from Stamkos on how to not let this type of chatter bother him and not bring it in the locker room.

“I think having him go through it and seeing him go through it the whole year I think that experience is going to help you,” Bishop said. “I’m not too worried about it.”

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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper

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