Okay, time to Devils-fan out a little bit. First off, to get it out of the way - Daneyko is clearly towards the bottom of players with retired #s. That said, his jersey retirement isn't at all controversial among Devils fans who watched the team through the 1990s (and earlier) because, as I said, he was the man who did everything for the team, through years of Mickey Mouse quality hockey, through the first time the franchise ever made the playoffs, through 3 Cups. Even on his last legs, he provided emotional inspiration for the team in 2003 - when he was announced in the lineup for Game 7 of the finals, he got a standing ovation, and the team seemed to feed off the energy. John MacLean was at least as important to the team as Daneyko through Mickey Mouse, the first playoffs, and the first Cup, but then he left. Daneyko was all that remained of the core of the miracle team of 1988 to last through the 2nd Cup in 2000... and he was still there in 2003.
Another way to put it...
From the 1995 finals (and sometimes before then) until Daneyko's legs starting figuratively falling off late in 2003, this was the core of the best defensive team of its era:
Scott Stevens - X
Ken Daneyko - Scott Niedermayer
Martin Brodeur
(X was Shawn Chambers, then Tommy Albelin, then a string of rookies until finally rookie Brian Rafalski stuck).
Obviously Daneyko was least important of the 4 regulars from 1995-2003, but as said, his jersey retirement is about the continuity from 1988 (and even before) through 2003.
Okay, end fanboy rant.