Martin Brodeur retiring with Blues, will always be Devil
Martin Brodeur will retire as a St. Louis Blues player and join their management team Thursday, but he will always be a New Jersey Devil.
He will be a Devil like Steve Yzerman was a Detroit Red Wing and Rocket Richard was a Montreal Canadien. When you remember the Devils' three Stanley Cup titles, you recall the contributions of Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer and others, but you see Brodeur as the face of the franchise.
For two decades, the Devils were fueled by Brodeur's talent and composure. He was an unflappable presence, a man who always seemed to have the same relaxed demeanor whether he was playing a preseason contest or a Game 7 playoff game.
Former NHL goalie Chico Resch always said Brodeur had the late "Terry Sawchuk's competitiveness and Glenn Hall's positive personality."
Brodeur, 42, has an engaging presence, quick with a quip and forever interested in what everyone has to say. Teammates wanted to be at their best in front of Brodeur because he always tried to make their life easier. He shared the glory and didn't point fingers when things went wrong. It is acceptable in the NHL for goalies to be moody and intense, but Brodeur was as easy-going and likable as a first grade teacher.
"He never once put blame on anyone in front of him," Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello told USA TODAY Sports. "He would never say someone should have had this or should have had that. In fact, it was just the opposite - when we weren't playing well. He would alter how he played to try to anticipate and cover up. He would try to do too much. The team and logo was always more important to him than anything and winning was what it was about."
Debate over who is the greatest goalie in NHL history will rage into the next millennium, but Brodeur is in the conversation with Sawchuk and Patrick Roy.
If winning is the criteria by which goalies should be judged, Brodeur leaves his playing days as the most accomplished goalie in NHL history.
In 22 seasons, Brodeur had an NHL-record 691 win and 125 shutouts in the regular season, plus 113 playoff wins, three Stanley Cups, two Olympic gold medals and a World Cup. He won four Vezina Trophies, and was named first- or second-team All-Star seven times.
"He's been an integral part of winning, and he has such charisma and he's been an ambassador for the game," Lamoriello said. "What else can you say about someone?"
He also will be remembered as one of the best puck-handling goalies to play the game. He gave the Devils a distinct advantage for two decades because he could clear the puck out of danger or trigger rushes with sharp outlet passes. The trapezoid rule was put in partly to counter the impact that Brodeur, and others like him, had with the puck.
"The best thing you can say about that ability is that they changed the rule because of him," Lamoriello said.
In this era of butterfly goalies who primarily play on their knees, Brodeur was a hybrid goalie. He went down only when there was a reason to go down. He challenged shooters aggressively. No one teaches that hybrid style anymore. But that style will make Brodeur a slam-dunk first ballot Hall of Famer.
When Brodeur retires Thursday, he should probably thank older brother Claude for an in-your-face lecture he gave his younger brother three decades ago. At 12, Marty was angered that he had been benched for three games because he missed a game after the death of his grandmother. He told the family he was quitting hockey to concentrate on skiing.
Claude set him straight, thereby changing Marty's life forever.
The only unusual aspect of Brodeur's retirement is that he is joining the Blues as an assistant general manager and not the Devils. It has long been assumed that when Brodeur retired he would join Lamoriello's staff. They have always been very close.
But the Blues were impressed with how Brodeur's aura positively impacted the team in his short tenure in St. Louis. General manager Doug Armstrong convinced him that his input could be beneficial for the Blues in their march toward the playoffs.
Taking the Blues job makes perfect sense for Brodeur. The Blues could be headed on a Stanley Cup run, and this season, the Devils are going nowhere. Instead of learning the managerial ropes under Lamoriello, a man he knows all too well, he will now study under a different maestro. Armstrong is a respected administrator, and studying under a different GM can only help Brodeur. This is a smart play by Brodeur.
He can take all he learns under Armstrong back to the Devils when he eventually joins that management team. Count on that happening at some point.
"He's a Devil - he knows that," Lamoriello said. "We've talked a lot. I understand this decision. I'm sure the (St. Louis) players love him and I know (coach Ken Hitchcock) loves him and Army is such a quality person. Marty has gotten attached to this team. He is going to work with the players, talk to the players. This fits his personality."
With Lamoriello's retirement approaching, Brodeur might be starting to position himself as his successor. He's a Devil at heart.
PHOTOS: Martin Brodeur through the years
