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18 MINNESOTAHOCKEYJOURNAL.COM // OCTOBER.2014 Paul Martin may have packed away the Class of 2000 letterman jacket and ditched the late-90s haircut, but the NHL defenseman still maintains the Minnesota Hockey role model status he first established as the cover boy of Minnesota Hockey Journal 14 years ago. "I still don't know what I was thinking with that hair," Martin joked of his March 2000 cover shoot. "I definitely still get some calls and comments from my teammates, so it's been a good ribbing for me. I was just happy to be a part of it and to be looked at as a 'leading example' at the time, so I can take the heat." Martin has always been an easy peg for a hockey role model. At 17, he was a three- sport all-conference selection with a 3.8 GPA and excellent attitude. Now, at 33, with 10 years of NHL experience, two NCAA national championships and an Olympics under his belt, Martin still holds true to his roots and the class-act character that originally developed in the State of Hockey. Rink Rat The Elk River native grew up on the outdoor ice. Skating on the pond behind his parents' house with neighbors and friends, Martin said he was outside more than in. Out on Handke Pit, it wasn't uncommon to skate under the floodlights until Martin's parents called him home. "(On the pond) is where you learn a lot of your skill," said Martin. "I think in practice you learn the basics like how to skate and the way you should play. But out on the outdoor rinks and ponds, being a rink rat is where you learn how to be crafty and make plays on your own without a coach or parent instructing you. "You have to make sure you have extra gloves and an extra pair of socks, but I think that's part of the fun." LetteRwinneR While hockey was his passion that turned into a career, Martin didn't limit himself to just sticks and skates. He was all-state on the football field and a starter on the baseball diamond. Martin admits he even took a break from hockey for a season in seventh grade to join his friends on the basketball team. He played both basketball and hockey up until ninth grade when schedules made it impossible to juggle. "I'm a big advocate for playing different sports," he stated. "I played sports by season and I always enjoyed that. My dad's No. 1 rule was whatever season sport I was playing, I wasn't missing any of it for another sport. If I was playing football, I wouldn't miss it for hockey or baseball. "Playing those other sports helped me become a better athlete. Baseball, football, basketball, soccer or track, all those sports help round you out as a player. Nowadays everyone thinks you have to specialize at such a young age, which I don't believe in. I think kids should be playing other sports — it really only helps them." Even in the offseason Martin continues to make time to remove himself from the rink. It's a habit he says he just won't shake. MaRtin Minnesota ' s BY JESSI PIERCE enteRing his second decade in the nhL, PauL MaRtin RefLects on his caReeR and what it Means to be a Minnesotan MHJ cover March 2000! MaRtin