Confirmed with Link: Brodeur elected to the HHoF

[Bleedred]

The guy was a lock when he still had a decade left to play. No brainer for sure.

I remember arguing back in 2002 that he was already in the HOF and that he probably only had to play 3-4 more years just to get in, with a Vezina (remember he had yet to win one of those by that time) and another cup win (possibly a Conn Smythe) maybe even reducing that. It was usually a bunch of idiots who argued against it. It was pretty apparent by 2003 that he was gonna own the wins record, upon Roy announcing his retirement. Barring some freak career ending injury. And it was pretty clear sailing for him to own the shutout record by that point. I think he was just a few regular shutouts short of Roy's career total just by the time Roy retired. Roy had 66 career and Marty had 64 at the conclusion of the 02-03 regular season.

Marty passed him very early in the 03-04 season, so Roy had only been retired a few months before Marty passed him in career shutouts. I believe Belfour was ahead of Marty at that point, but both were tied (among active goalies) with 75 by the conclusion of the 03-04 season. Belfour was also just about 40, so you knew Marty was gonna zoom past him.

 

[Cage Helmet]

I can’t remember the first time I saw Marty. See, I was living out west from 88-95 and got into hockey around 1990. Just whatever ESPN or the deuce were showing. We didn’t have an NHL team out there at the time for me to follow locally. I probably first saw Marty in the 93-94 season on some nationally televised game. I watched every NJD game of the 94 playoffs that was nationally broadcast and Marty appealed to me. Only that guy Hasek was fun to watch at the position aside from MB. I have a baby picture from probably about 1983 where I’m wearing some baby sized Devils shirt and I was from Jersey. So it made logical sense to root for the NJD with how cool its tender looked while playing. I moved back to Jersey in February of 1995 and got to watch every Devils game locally. We were supposed to move somewhere else, but I was so excited when I learned we were moving back to Jersey and I could watch Marty every night. And I barely missed a game over the years. Even after I moved out of state again.

I had been down on Marty a bit by the turn of the decade. I remember during his final NJD game I got choked up during the post game send off. There I was at 31 years old and I was seeing the end of someone who I had been with since I was 12 years old. Marty was my teenage and young adult life. I felt a personal connection to him after all those years. Something that I think most fans don’t get to experience. I met my wife the summer following his last game with us. She only got to see him with the Blues. I really hope they give us a Marty game this year to celebrate his introduction into the HOF. I really want to be there to cheer for Marty again. We can never have too many times to cheer on Marty.

 

[Cage Helmet]

I lost my virginity a few hours before his first career shutout. I wouldn't even remember that if he didn't get a shutout that night, his first of 125. His first of 149 shutouts actually. Regular season and playoffs combined.

It was always a cool and interesting connection that I had. If he hadn't ever been any good or just kind of flamed out like Corey Schwab and really had no career to speak of, I probably wouldn't have remembered that. It would have just been a guy having a shutout. Although at the time, I don't think the list of Devils goalies with a shutout was very long.

I was vocally not happy with his performance for a bit before he retired, but I was also not quite ready to say goodbye when he did retire.

So it was hard.

You mean to tell me you’re not a virgin, Bleed?

Mine was actually right after game 1 of the 03 ECF. I think the next night. Marty stole that series. For as much as I’ve had to endure constant crapola about Marty never stealing a series. That save on Hossa in the dying minutes of game 7 was incredible. We were tied up at 2 and that was a real heart stopping moment. I thought we had lost the series right there. OTT was pressing hard at the time. Then we come up the ice for the Friesen game winner. I have more to say about the Conn Smythe snub, but I don’t want to pollute this thread.

 

[Nubmer6]

If my memory serves me correctly, the first time I saw Marty play was on TV. I think it was a playoff game against the Rags. Terreri was injured and Billington started, I think. The Rags ended up blowing us out like 5-1 by the end of the 2nd so we stuck Bordeur in. I believe we started a furious comeback in the 3rd but ended up losing 5-4 or 6-4. Something like that. I would never have guessed Marty would have become our starter, much less one of the greatest goalies in league history.

BTW, for those of you who attended the game where Marty broke the record, was that not one of the electrifying games you've ever been to? I have it ranked right up there with the 95 cup clinching game, and actually ahead of the other two cup clinchers. It was a truely special game.

 

[JrFischer54]

You mean to tell me you’re not a virgin, Bleed?

Mine was actually right after game 1 of the 03 ECF. I think the next night. Marty stole that series. For as much as I’ve had to endure constant crapola about Marty never stealing a series. That save on Hossa in the dying minutes of game 7 was incredible. We were tied up at 2 and that was a real heart stopping moment. I thought we had lost the series right there. OTT was pressing hard at the time. Then we come up the ice for the Friesen game winner. I have more to say about the Conn Smythe snub, but I don’t want to pollute this thread.

It is amazing though he only got Out of the second round 6 times.

 

[Patrik26]

I lost my virginity a few hours before his first career shutout. I wouldn't even remember that if he didn't get a shutout that night, his first of 125. His first of 149 shutouts actually. Regular season and playoffs combined.

It was always a cool and interesting connection that I had. If he hadn't ever been any good or just kind of flamed out like Corey Schwab and really had no career to speak of, I probably wouldn't have remembered that. It would have just been a guy having a shutout. Although at the time, I don't think the list of Devils goalies with a shutout was very long.

I was vocally not happy with his performance for a bit before he retired, but I was also not quite ready to say goodbye when he did retire.

So it was hard.

TMI. Just TMI.

 

[Nubmer6]

It is amazing though he only got Out of the second round 6 times.

Ya, and 4 of those times we were in the finals, and one we were a goal away.

 

[glenwo2]

Hey someone got that joke!

Just 'cause your name has Fischer in it(and it sounds like Fischler), doesn't mean you're STAN.

 

[Bleedred]

Outside of Roy, what other goalie of Marty's era made it out of the second round more times than he did? Hasek only made it out of the second round 4 times. I'm not counting when he was the backup in Detroit for the 08 cup or when he backed up for Chicago in the early 90's. That doesn't count.

Belfour was out of the second round 5 times.

Cujo was out of the second round twice.

Lundqvist has only been out of the second round three times.

Luongo has been out of the second round once.

Fleury is the most successful playoff goaltender of this current generation and even he's only been out of the second round four times. I'm not counting 2016 or 2013, when he was a backup on teams that made it to the conference finals/Stanley Cup Finals, but I am counting 2017 because he did start the first two rounds and got through them before getting yanked in the third round.

 

[glenwo2]

I lost my virginity a few hours before his first career shutout.

Well now THERE'S an image we could do without.

 

[AfroThunder396]

We are certainly spoiled. Devils fans don't really have a reasonable frame of reference for how goalies should perform because we spent over half our time in NJ with this freak of nature as our role model. Marty was the exception to every rule, and it's not at all fair that every goalie who comes after will inevitably be compared to him.

Like, it kinda bothers me when guys win the Vezina with like 35 wins or whatever. I know consciously that's a fine season, but because of what I grew up with it seems totally impotent in comparison.

 

[Nubmer6]

Well now THERE'S an image we could do without.

Especially with the name "Bleed Red"
*dodges pre-emptively again*

 

[JrFischer54]

i don’t know he made 5 trips past the second round in his first 10 years and then 1 at the tail end of his career.

 

[Game Breaker]

They really need to look at the sentence construction because I thought Marty was the first black player in the NHL and the League Commissioner...

View media item 2487
Anyway...CONGRATS!!! Surprised it didn't happen while he was still playing

 

[Nubmer6]

i don’t know he made 5 trips past the second round in his first 10 years and then 1 at the tail end of his career.

It's pretty amazing to be in the finals 5 (almost 6) times in a 20 year career. We were treated to a SCF once every 4 years on average with Marty between the pipes. We were so spoiled.

 

[Oneiro]

I was at the game where he broke the wins record against the Blackhawks. I remember one last sneaky Toews or Kane (potential tying) shot that he made a crazy skate save on. Then later, chuckling with my dad and the much older Devils fan next to me about how dumb it was they were making him cut the net off the goal posts.

I guess this officially closes that era out. Wow.

 

[Emperoreddy]

I am surprised he made the cut with those career numbers.

 

[Japam]

He made his debut on my birthday. It was a stretch of games where even our backup backups were going down with injury. We had a new goalie in every night. Chad Erickson? LOL, what a nightmare that guy was. Then Marty plays the next game and I'm like "jesus, not another one". He shut me up quick. I knew our goaltending issues were going to be solved right there.

 

[None Shall Pass]

I lost my virginity a few hours before his first career shutout.

<SNIP>

I was vocally not happy with his performance

<SNIP>

So it was hard.

 

[Bleedred]

LOL talk about out of context!

 

[Bleedred]

He made his debut on my birthday. It was a stretch of games where even our backup backups were going down with injury. We had a new goalie in every night. Chad Erickson? LOL, what a nightmare that guy was. Then Marty plays the next game and I'm like "jesus, not another one". He shut me up quick. I knew our goaltending issues were going to be solved right there.

LOL Chad Erickson. He had a careee 4.50 GAA in 2 games! I haven’t heard this name in like 25 years! Only two NHL appearances, but played all the way until 2001!

 

[blood gin]

Have to say with what's happened with Cory (not his fault of course) the last several years I'm really starting to see how much I took for granted Marty's durability. Until 2008-2009 (the season he turned 37) Brodeur never had a major injury

 

[blood gin]

I was at the game where he broke the wins record against the Blackhawks. I remember one last sneaky Toews or Kane (potential tying) shot that he made a crazy skate save on. Then later, chuckling with my dad and the much older Devils fan next to me about how dumb it was they were making him cut the net off the goal posts.

I guess this officially closes that era out. Wow.

Lou had to get the 99c kindergarten safety scissors that were on sale

 

[Tretyak 20]

He made his debut on my birthday. It was a stretch of games where even our backup backups were going down with injury. We had a new goalie in every night. Chad Erickson? LOL, what a nightmare that guy was. Then Marty plays the next game and I'm like "jesus, not another one". He shut me up quick. I knew our goaltending issues were going to be solved right there.

I have a signed Chad Erickson stick. True story.

 

[Bleedred]

Have to say with what's happened with Cory (not his fault of course) the last several years I'm really starting to see how much I took for granted Marty's durability. Until 2008-2009 (the season he turned 37) Brodeur never had a major injury

I can only remember one injury before 08-09 that took him out for more than maybe a week. It was for like 2 weeks back in 2005, right after the lockout. Maybe the first month of the season or so? I think he got injured in a game against Tampa, and was out for 2, maybe 2.5 weeks? Could have been 3 at the most.

He may have missed a week or so once or twice between 93-05, but it rarely ever happened.