End of the line: Martin Brodeur retires to join Blues front office

By Brandon C. Williams | Jan 27, 2015

Dec 29, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Blues goalie Martin Brodeur (30) looks on against the Colorado Avalanche during the first period at Scottrade Center. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

After a brief stint between the pipes for the St. Louis Blues, Martin Brodeur will announce his retirement and join the Blues front office as an executive.

Martin Brodeur finally listened to Father Time.

Following a brief comeback earlier this season with the St. Louis Blues, the NHL’s all-time leader in wins and shutouts will formally announce his retirement during a Thursday press conference, which will also announce Brodeur’s joining the franchise in an executive position.

There is no arguing when it comes to Brodeur’s status as the greatest goalie in NHL history. The 42-year-old went Cy Young on the league’s record books and will retire with a host of records that will be nearly impossible to eclipse. His 691 career wins and 125 shutouts will stand for decades, along with his records for starts (204) and shutouts in Stanley Cup playoff annals.

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Brodeur played all but seven of his 1,266 appearances with the New Jersey Devils, where he helped lift a then-mediocre franchise to the highest of NHL heights, winning three Stanley Cup titles along with five Jennings trophies and four Vezina Trophies. He was the man in the mask when Team Canada heard its national anthem played after winning Olympic gold medals in 2002 and 2010.

The Devils did not re-sign Brodeur this past offseason, which led him to the Blues, where he went 3-3-0 with a 2.87 goals against average and a .899 save percentage, a far cry from his career 2.12 GAA and .912 save percentage. While age began to walk Brodeur down, he did provide Blues fans one last moment of glory when he shut out the Avalanche on December 29.

Regular goalie Brian Elliott’s return and the emergence of Jake Allen left Brodeur third on the depth chart. He had not been with the team the past two weeks while pondering his future.

While Brodeur will begin his post-retirement with the Blues, there are those who feel that he will come back home to the Devils.

“Marty is a very loyal guy in both ways,” Devils general manager Lamoriello said. “They gave him an opportunity (to play). There are a lot of things going through his mind right now. He’ll be back with the Devils.”

One can imagine the reaction that will come if the franchise’s most prolific player returns to Jersey. For now, Brodeur’s retirement presents an opportunity to celebrate a performer who was not only the greatest goalie of all-time, but one of the game’s elite standouts who will have no problem skating into the Hockey Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible.

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