Goaltender Martin Brodeur just can’t seem to fail. 
| After missing most of the season recovering from elbow surgery, Martin Brodeur | Brodeur has come back looking just as good as new. While the Devils certainly have helped him out, he hasn’t needed all that much support. In 3 games since coming back, Brodeur has 3 victories, two of them shutouts. The other game, against the Florida Panthers>, he allowed 2 goals, after his Devils had already put up a 5 goal lead. He has saved 66 of 68 shots, and looks well poised to carry the Devils through another serious run at the Stanley Cup. |
With each win, and each shutout, Brodeur inches closer to breaking and setting records for the most wins and shutouts by any NHL goalie in his career. Patrick Roy holds the record for most wins with 551, while Hall of Famer Terry Sawchuk holds the shutout record with 103. Brodeur currently trails both marks by 4, and could very well break both records by season’s end.
The interesting point to note about this whole situation is the fact that New Jersey was playing very well, even without their star goalie. Backup Scott Clemmensen stepped up admirably and, after Marty got the Devils off to a 6-2-2 start before being injured, helped the Devils reach their current mark of 41-19-3, good for 2nd place in the Eastern Conference. While other starters may have lost their jobs after such strong play from a backup goalie, there was never any doubt as to whether or not Brodeur was going to retake his usual position between the posts.
