I remember when Martin Brodeur was just a young kid, first making impressions in the early nineties. He had a breakout season in 1994, the year that the Devils looked suddenly awesome during the regular season, and made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals, taking a 3 games to 2 lead against the Rangers, and having an opportunity to close the series out at home in the Brendan Byrne Arena, seemingly on the cusp of a shocking, and historic, Stanley Cup Finals appearance!
That was the legendary game when Mark Messier of the Rangers predicted that New York world win, and when he himself scored a hat trick in the final period to help lift the Rangers from a two-goal deficit to win the game and force a decisive Game 7 at Madison Square Garden. The Devils and Rangers fought a fierce battle in that one, too, but ultimately, New York won that, to qualify for their first Stanley Cup Finals in a decade and a half, which they ultimately won, their first Cup in 54 years.
The Devils looked pretty subpar the next season, a strike-shortened one. They were only the fifth seed, and nothing really seemed to make them stand out in any real way.
Until the playoffs, when they suddenly looked highly charged, storming past one opponent after another, and this time, winning the Eastern Conference Finals against yet another heated rival, the Philadelphia Flyers. I was at the deciding Game 6, and it was truly awesome!
New Jersey, for the first time ever, had a professional sports franchise in the finals, and the Devils shockingly swept the heavily favored Detroit Red Wings to hoist their first Cup ever!
They had a stifling defense, but it was the goaltending of Brodeur that really made it all stand up, and allowed New Jersey to enjoy the level of success that they would have in the following years.
New Jersey would not enjoy a successful season the following year, but from the 1996-97 season until the 1998-99 season, the Devils followed a pattern that another of my favorite teams, the DePaul Blue Demons, would have been familiar with: a dominant regular season where they were easily tops in the East, only to exit early from the playoffs. I remember one headline reading, "On the Road to the Cup, Devils Take First Exit."
Somehow, however, the Devils came to life again in the 2000 playoffs, once against as the fifth or so seed, if memory serves me correctly. Once again, it was the Flyers in the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Devils faced a 3 games to 1 margin. But they erupted, winning the remaining three games to stun Philadelphia, and head towards their second Stanley Cup Finals ever. They defeated the defending Cup Champions, the Dallas Stars, 4 games to 2, to hoist the Cup for the second time in franchise history.
They reached the Cup finals again in 2001, and after an epic seven-game series against the Colorado Avalanche, they ultimately fell just short in their quest to repeat.
But they made it again in 2003, and once again, the series went the distance. This time, however, the Devils won in a series where each team won their home games. The Devils defeated the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in that final game, to hoist their third Cup in nine seasons - pretty much a dynasty!
They enjoyed success in the following seasons, although nothing like what they had enjoyed in those championship years.
Still, along the way, Brodeur had become a legendary goalie with a ton of accomplishments to his credit! He became the winningest goalie ever, with the most career wins and career shut outs. The Devils reached the Stanley Cup Finals again in 2012, but lost to the very tough Los Angeles Kings, the dominant team of that year. However, New Jersey played well and had a strong showing, despite falling behind 3 games to 0. They won Game 4 on the road, then handed the Kings their only road playoff defeat of the playoffs in the next game, to make it interesting at 3 games to 2, before bowing to the champions in Game 6.
By then, age was becoming an issue. He had been at it for a very long time. Yet, he wanted to continue, despite the Devils increasingly leaning more in favor of a younger goalie.
Eventually, he left the Devils, something that I hoped he was never going to do. He went to the St. Louis Blues, and became a goalie (not the goalie). He added a few more games, including a few wins. But hardly anyone will remember his career for those few games with the Blues. His shining moment in time was with the Devils, without question.
At least as a player. He will not be involved in decision making on a managerial level for the Blues, however. And I wish him well. A great era for hockey goaltending has now come to an end. He will be remembered fondly.
Brodeur to retire, join St. Louis Blues front office By R.B. FALLSTROM (AP Sports Writer), January 28, 2015:
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/brodeur-retire-join-st-louis-blues-front-office-195227843--nhl.html
No comments:
Post a Comment