The Legend of Marty

Martin Brodeur shakes idol Patrick Roy's hand after tying record for most wins.

Martin Brodeur recently became the winningest goalie in NHL history, surpassing childhood idol Patrick Roy with Win No.552 making 30 stops in a 3-2 home triumph over the Blackhawks.

The 36 year-old Montreal, Quebec native tied Roy in his hometown making 22 saves in a 3-1 win over the Canadiens on Saturday, March 15 before a national Hockey Night In Canada audience. Over 21,000 at the Bell Centre cheered one of their heroes including proud father Denis Brodeur, who stayed to take pics of his youngest son as he had for the Canadiens and Expos while raising him. The night was particularly special for Marty, who will never forget the opposing fans chanting his name.

“To look around and see the guys reacting, I finally did it,” Brodeur said. “The only one I knew where he was sitting was my dad. He had a pretty good seat.”

“When you do these kinds of things sometimes you don’t have a chance to meet the person,” an emotional Brodeur expressed of Roy being in attendance when he tied it. “I got to know the guy, I played with him, I played against him, we had great battles, he took a Stanley Cup away from me; it showed a lot of class. I really appreciated it.”

“Im happy to be here tonight and see it happen,” Roy pointed out. “Nothing against Montreal. I know Montreal is in the middle of a big race but I think it’s a great moment in the game and I’m sure Marty is very excited to see it happen in his hometown in front of his family.”

Of the former Montreal idol who led the Canadiens to Cups in 1986 as a rookie and 1993, Brodeur noted:

“He visited me at the hotel before I came over here and he wished me good luck. That was really nice of him.”

“You can’t forget this one,” Devil teammate Brian Rolston said after scoring the winner for his 300th career NHL goal. “It was an exciting game for Marty obviously to come home and I was just happy that I was a part of it, too. You know, getting the game-winner on my 300th, I feel good about that and happy with the way we’re playing as a team.”

“When we scored the third goal, I thought, ‘All right. This could be it,’ Brodeur said referring to New Jersey captain Jamie Langenbrunner’s insurance tally with 7:03 remaining.

Explained Langenbrunner:

“We’ve just got to applaud the crowd here tonight. Amazing, and what a show of respect.”

When Brodeur was announced as the game’s 1st Star, veteran Canadien blueliner Patrice Brisebois, who garnered 2nd Star recognizing his 1,000th career game remained on the ice to congratulate the winning Devil netminder.

“You know Marty’s a really good friend, and I wanted to go personally and congratulate him,”  Brisebois pointed out.”He deserves that record, he’s a great athlete and a great guy. It’s awesome for him.”

As the Legend of Marty grows, we’ll keep track of how many victories he gets as well as how many shutouts. His 35-save shutout in a 4-0 home win over former coach Jacques Lemaire’s Wild on Friday, March 20 moved Brodeur within two of Terry Sawchuk’s once impossible record of 103. It was Brodeur’s fifth shutout of the season despite only his 20th start missing the past three months with a torn bicep.

Fittingly enough on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, MB30 broke Roy’s record to become the all-time winningest goalie in the sport, making 30 saves in an exciting 3-2 home win over the Blackhawks at The Rock.

It looked like it would be routine when his teammates gave him a 3-0 lead that was punctuated by Brian Gionta’s shorthanded goal late in the second. However, the pesky Hawks chipped away at a three-goal lead built by ZZ Popp members Langenbrunner and Travis Zajac. When Dustin Byfuglien scored with just over 2:00 left in the contest, Brodeur earned Win No.552 on an extra special night that saw Patrik Elias become the all-time Devils franchise scoring leader thanks to setting up Gionta for what proved to be the winner.

“It was an exciting night,” an exuberant Brodeur explained after leaping in the air similar to when the only club he’s played for won their third Cup in 2003. “I’m happy that it’s done and over with. It’s been chaotic, the last few days. It was an awesome night. It was a great reception from the fans.”

“With 10 minutes left, I thought, ‘All right, this is finally going to happen,”’ the future Hockey Hall Of Famer added. “I was a clockwatcher, a little bit. When 2 minutes came and they scored, I said, ‘I’ve got 2 more minutes to kill.’ It made it tough in the last few minutes, but we got it done.”

Following chants from a pumped up sellout crowd of “Thank you Mar—ty, Thank you Mar—ty, Thank you Mar—ty” and the traditional “Mar—ty’s Bett—er, Mar—ty’s Bett—er, Mar—ty’s Bett—er,” the new record holder cut the net with a scissors to savor the monumental moment.

“It’s definitely harder than I thought,” he quipped after winning No.552 in his 987th game of a brilliant 15-year career. “These basketball players, it’s only a little net. This was a big net. I had help from a couple of my teammates.”

“This is one of those really special moments that doesn’t come along often,” praised NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, who was in the building for a memorable night. “Maybe once in a lifetime, maybe once in two lifetimes.

“We witnessed some history here tonight, and the fans recognized that. This building was on edge, emotionally excited throughout.”

Teammate and future Hallbound Brendan Shanahan noticed prior to the game how different the atmosphere felt.

“Guys were commenting that is was like a Stanley Cup atmosphere there, you know the intensity, the excitement, the buzz in the arena,” he pointed out. “You felt it from the drop of the puck. You felt it in warmup.”

For Brodeur, who’ll have nearly every goalie record including shutouts as he chases Terry Sawchuk, the man Lou Lamoriello actually traded down with Calgary (Trevor Kidd) to get in 1990 (20th overall) has done it all, winning three Stanley Cups, four Vezinas and delivering Olympic gold to hometown country Canada in Salt Lake (2002).

“He is a special goalie,” Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville praised. “You look at the consistency, the volumes of games he can play and his consistency in the net. They changed the rules because of the way he handled the puck. He’s amazing. Not many goalies have that style and he keeps getting better and better and better. At this stage of his career, he looks as good as ever.”

MB30 Chases Down Sawchuk: There’s a new shutout King and his name is Martin Brodeur. On December 22, 2009, the 37 year-old franchise New Jersey Devil surpassed Terry Sawchuk’s 40-year old record by stopping all 35 shots in a 4-0 blanking against the rival Penguins at Mellon Arena.

After shutting out the Sabres two weeks prior on 12/7 at HSBC to tie Sawchuk with shutout No.103, MB30 broke another once thought unbreakable record- doing it in style by silencing dynamic duo Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin before a stunned Pens’ crowd. That it came in an Atlantic first place showdown was no surprise for a player that’s risen to the occasion many times throughout his illustrious Hall Of Fame career. The 35 saves gave him elusive shutout No.104 in game 1,032 with all 16 seasons spent in the Garden State, helping turn the Devils into an elite franchise. It was also win No.580.

“This record was held for so long, when you do break records and see how long they lasted, it’s cool,” a thrilled Brodeur noted of passing such a legend. “Tying it was amazing and surpassing him, was a great honor for me to be in that position.”

Making it even more special was that Pens’ owner Mario Lemieux was in the house, sending him a congratulatory message on the big screen once the game concluded with classy Pittsburgh fans politely cheering his new record.

“It’s great, but I wasn’t focusing on it. I’m definitely happy it’s passed and we can just go play, and I don’t have to answer the questions about it.”

Surpassing a record definitely becomes a little nerve-racking. I don’t get nervous, but today I was a little nervous. It was a like a good playoff game, everybody was trying to get the puck out and blocking shots and definitely it was a great effort by my teammates for me to break it.”

For Brodeur, it was fitting to accomplish the remarkable feat against a rival where he’d had recent success, taking a 16-4 record at the 48 year-old arena in his last 20 appearances in what’s the final season at Mellon Arena.

“It’s great that we got it the way we did, in maybe our last game here,” Brodeur said. “It was a big game for us, so to get the shutout on top of it is great.”

“It’s pretty incredible. The records are piling up,” praised Crosby after nearly scoring with 90 seconds left before his shot rang off the post. “He’s a legendary goalie and he proves it every year.”

Explained leading scorer Zach Parise who assisted twice in the big win of his goalie:

“When it got down to 10 minutes, five minutes, everybody’s thinking about it [the record]. We’re on the ice when a lot of these records are happening and it’s fun. … I don’t think much needs to be said. It’s all self-explanatory, all the winning he’s done, the shutouts, the [three Stanley] Cups. It’s unbelievable.”

As he continues to play, Marty’s Legend grows.

Martin Brodeur with the historic net from Win No.552

FOLLOWING MARTY

Date            Win No.     Opponent    Score   Saves

*3/14/09  551            @ Canadiens 3-1      22

+3/17/09  552           vs Blackhawks 3-2  30

3/20/09    553            vs Wild            4-0    35

4/3/09       554            vs Lightning  5-4 (OT) 7 in relief

4/4/09       555            @ Sabres        3-2     35

4/9/09       556            @ Senators    3-2 (SO)  28

4/11/09     557            vs Hurricanes  3-2       23

10/8/09     558             @ Lightning     4-3 (SO)  41

10/10/09   559             @ Panthers      3-2        19

10/12/09    560             @ Capitals        3-2 (SO)    31

10/17/09    561              vs Hurricanes 2-0       26

10/22/09    562              @ Rangers        4-2       29

10/24/09    563              @ Penguins      4-1        32

10/31/09     564              @ Lightning     2-1 (SO)  18

11/4/09        565              vs Capitals        3-2        26

11/7/09        566              @ Senators       3-2        19

11/11/09       567              vs Ducks            3-1        31

11/12/09       568              @ Penguins       4-1       25

11/14/09        569              vs Capitals        5-2       27

11/25/09        570              vs Senators      3-1       24

11/27/09        571              @ Bruins            2-1       32

11/28/09         572              vs Islanders     6-1       22

12/4/09           573               vs Lightning     3-2      22

12/5/09           574               vs Red Wings    4-3      28

12/7/09           575               @ Sabres            3-0      22

12/9/09            576               vs Hurricanes   4-2      21

12/12/09          577               vs Flyers            4-1      22

12/16/09          578                vs Canadiens    2-1     17

12/18/09          579                vs Senators       4-2      27

12/21/09          580                  @ Penguins      4-0      35

12/28/09          581                  vs Thrashers    3-2      24

12/30/09          582                  vs Penguins      2-0      32

1/3/10                583                   @ Wild               5-3       29

1/5/10                 584                   vs Stars             4-0       28

1/9/10                 585                   @ Canadiens   2-1        29

1/12/10               586                   @ Rangers       1-0        51

1/20/10               587                    vs Panthers     2-0      22 

1/23/10                588                    @ Islanders    4-2       20

1/29/10                 589                    vs Maple Leafs 5-4    25

2/5/10                    590                    vs Maple Leafs 4-3    17

2/12/10                  591                    vs Predators     5-2    19

3/2/10                     592                    @ Sharks            4-3    17

3/10/10                   593                    vs Rangers         6-3    16

3/12/10                    594                    vs Penguins       3-1     34

3/15/10                     595                    vs Bruins            3-2     34

3/17/10                     596                    vs Penguins       5-2     24

3/23/10                     597                     vs Blue Jackets 6-3    19

3/27/10                     598                     @ Canadiens     4-2     25

4/3/10                        599                     @ Hurricanes   4-0     26

4/6/10                        600                     @ Thrashers 3-0     19

4/10/10                      601                      vs Islanders     7-1     18

4/11/10                       602                      vs Sabres          2-1      22

*Tied Roy’s record

+Broke record

CHASING SAWCHUK

Date  Shutout No.  Opponent  Saves

10/18/08        97   @ Atlanta  25

10/22/08        98  vs Dallas      21

2/26/09           99  vs Colorado  24

3/1/09              100 vs Philadelphia  27

3/20/09           101  vs Minnesota  35

10/17/09         102  vs Carolina     26

12/7/09            103 @ Buffalo         22

12/21/09          104 @ Pittsburgh  35

12/30/09         105  vs Pittsburgh      32

1/5/10               106  vs Dallas               28

1/12/10             107 @ Rangers            51*

1/20/10            108  vs Florida             22

4/3/10               109 @ Carolina            26

4/6/10               110 @ Atlanta               19

*Career high in classic double shutout with MB30 prevailing over Lundqvist in shootout

ALL-TIME SHUTOUT LEADERS REG. SEASON

Player                        SHO    Team(s)                                             Years

Martin Brodeur 110    NJ Devils                                          ’91-92 – Present

Terry Sawchuk      103      Det, Bos, Tor, LA, NYR              ’49-50 – 69-70

*George Hainsworth 94  Mtl, Tor                                            ’26-27 – 36-37

Glenn Hall                    84   Det, Chi, Stl                                      ’52-53 – 70-71

Jacques Plante           82   Mtl, NYR, Stl, Tor, Bos             ’52-53 – 72-73

+Dominik Hasek        81   Chi, Buf, Det, Ott                            ’90-91 – 07-08

&Alec Connell             81   Ott, Det, NY, Mon                         ’24-25 – 36-37

Tiny Thompson          81  Bos, Det                                             ’28-29 – 39-40

Ed Belfour                    76  Chi, SJ, Dal, Tor, Fla                     ’88-89 – 06-07

Tony Esposito            76  Mtl, Chi                                              ’68-69 – 83-84

*Single season record 22 in 1928-29

+Drafted by Chicago in 1983 10th Round 199th Overall

&Played for Detroit Falcons, NY Americans and Montreal Maroons

Note: Esposito and Belfour both won the Calder and Vezina as Blackhawks in rookie seasons. Esposito’s 15 SHO are a rookie record.

MOST PLAYOFF GAMES BY A GOALIE

Player                  No.             Team(s)

Patrick Roy      247             Mtl/Col

Martin Brodeur 181     NJD

Ed Belfour          161             Chi/Dal/Tor

MOST CAREER PLAYOFF WINS

Player                           No.      Team(s)

Patrick Roy                151      Mtl/Col

Martin Brodeur  99         NJD

Grant Fuhr                 92         Edm/Buf/Stl

Billy Smith 88         NYI

Ed Belfour                  88         Chi/Dal/Tor

MOST CAREER PLAYOFF SHUTOUTS

Player                         No.    Team(s)

Martin Brodeur 23     NJD

Patrick Roy              23      Mtl/Col

Curtis Joseph          16      Stl/Edm/Tor

MOST SHUTOUTS ONE POSTSEASON

Player                         Year       No.       GP    Team

Martin Brodeur 2003      7          24     NJD+

Dominik Hasek        2002      6          23      Det+

J.S. Giguere               2003     5           21     Ana*

Nikolai Khabibulin 2004     5           23     TB+

Miikka Kiprusoff      2004     5           26     Cgy

+Team won Stanley Cup

*Won Conn Smythe in defeat

Note: Kiprusoff and Flames lost to Khabibulin and Lightning in 7 games