For a guy who isn’t playing right now, Marco Sturm sure is wrapping up the frequent miles over the last week or so. From Boston to Los Angeles, then off to St. Louis where he joined the Kings and he’s now in Nashville.
In between travel, rehabbing his knee, and getting to know his new teammates, Sturm took time out to check in with the NHL Power Play radio show. Here are the highlights…
* He thought the trade was going down 10 days ago. He went to LA earlier this week and passed all his tests and he’s “glad to be an LA King now.” It was tough mentally though because he had to say goodbye to his Bruins teammates multiple times.
* Being traded from San Jose to Boston was more difficult, as it was the first time he had to face that situation. However, he had two guys with him (Brad Stuart and Wayne Primeau) and they helped him a lot. The good thing this time was he was more prepared for the trade to happen.
* Going back to California is a positive in the deal. He loved it in San Jose and knew he wanted to come back this way. As soon as he heard Dean Lombardi was interested, it was an easy decision for him to waive his no trade clause.
* At the time he joined the Bruins (2005-06), he thinks the Eastern Conference had the “big guys, the tougher guys.” Now, hockey has changed. The West is tight – not only the standings, but how they play the game. Recently, he’s been trying to watch as many games from the West as possible to familiarize himself with things.
* He’s pushing to play two games before Christmas, might only get one though.
* He had a good week of practice in Boston, including full contact. He wants one week with the Kings before getting into a game. He feels good, feels healthy.
