27 replies to this topic

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Brodeur is/was not as good as Roy and Hasek. I can live with it. You have to be a great player to even be in that conversation.

He and Scott Stevens are the most important players in the history of a franchise that won three championships with them as leaders. 1 and 1a.

The Conn Smythe and Hart ... eh, it's peripheral to me.

It depends on what you mean by "is/was not as good as"

In terms of pure puck-stopping, no one was good as Hasek...he was absurdly good.
In terms of pure "clutchness", I'd have to give the edge to Roy, especially in the playoffs.

Brodeur is probably the best all-arounder, in terms of durability, puck-handling skills, etc. And he was able to perform at a high level for almost every season he played in. I'd have to give a slight edge to both Hasek and Roy, but we're splitting hairs here.

But to stay on topic, I don't feel like Brodeur's been screwed at all...he has multiple Vezinas, so it's not like his greatness has been ignored.

[DaneykoIsGod]

The time I thought Marty got robbed was when he lost the Vezina to Hasek in '96-97.

Hasek:
37-20-10, 2.27 GAA, .930 Sv%, 5 SO

Brodeur:
37-14-13, 1.88 GAA, .927 Sv%, 10 SO

IIRC, Brodeur was the first goalie since Dryden to have a GAA under 2.00 and record double-digit shutouts in a season that year.

And, of course, we all remember the year Jim friggin Carey got the Vezina. To be fair, it was the year the Devils missed the playoffs, '95-96, but still:

Carey:
35-24-9, 2.26 GAA, .906 Sv%, 9 SO

Brodeur:
34-30-12, 2.14 GAA, .911 Sv%, 6 SO

What stings about that is that Carey largely won that Vezina because of his 9 shutouts. The next year, Brodeur puts up 10 and, because everyone still attributed all of Brodeur's success to "the system" at the time, got Bourque-ed out of the award.

Still, the guy won 4 Vezinas. Add all those Jennings, the 3 Cups and the Olympic Gold he brought back to Canada ... the guy's trophy shelf is plenty full.

[Bulletproof]

Brodeur's greatest achievement wasn't being the best puck stopper of all time or the best playoff performer or even the best regular season goalie. To me, Brodeur belongs in the conversation of greatness due to his amazing consistency. Now, many of his detractors will point to all the great teams he has been on and how so many of his shutouts were of the "under 20 shot" variety. However, anybody who has played the position will tell you that it's sometimes harder to get a 15 save shut out then it is when you face 40. When you're getting bombarded, you get into a rhythm, your body is all warmed up and you start working on pure instinct and adrenaline. On the contrary, when you're sitting there uncontested for 10 minutes and all of a sudden it's, "Whoa! Time to make a save!", it's easier to let that one in because you're so out of the game. Brodeur was the most focused, unflappable goalie of all time and that lead to his amazing consistency. While that has fallen off in the last couple of seasons, it doesn't erase the 15 years of consistency that came before.

Oh, back on topic, no, he hasn't been short changed as a whole in his career. Yes, he's gotten award jipped a few times, but, like DiG said, his trophy case isn't hurting.

[MantaRay]

Obviously. Brodeur will go down as one of the best of all time. But one thing that most anti-Brodeur supporters point to is the fact that he never won a Hart or Conn Smythe.

You can sum up anti-Brodeur "supporters" in one phrase: Bitter Ranger fans.

Marty has his name inscribed three times on the only trophy that matters.

[Pepperkorn]

Until he wins the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Award, I will ALWAYS think Marty's been shafted

[MantaRay]

Until he wins the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Award, I will ALWAYS think Marty's been shafted

LOL

[Jerrydevil]

To me, Brodeur belongs in the conversation of greatness due to his amazing consistency.

Indeed.

[jim777]

What about poor Henri Richard, with his 11 championships, more than any other North American athlete in any team sport, always getting shafted by Maurice? Ah, the irony LOL

Edited by jim777, 11 February 2011 - 11:16 AM.