Martin Brodeur's success began with his father, Denis, who himself was a goaltender on Canada's 1956 bronze medal-winning Olympic team. Brodeur started to play hockey as a forward, but was asked to be his team's backup goalie at a tournament. "The next season," Martin explained, "my coach came up to me and said, 'Do you want to be a goalie or forward this year?' It was the biggest decision of my life, and I was seven years old. I don't know why I decided, but I thought it would be fun to play goal."
Martin was doubly blessed by his father, for not only had Denis been a goalie, he was also the longtime photographer of the Montreal Canadiens. For more than 20 years, Denis had been going to all Montreal games and practises, and of course when Martin was old enough he got to come along. Martin dreamed of playing for the Habs, but just as importantly he idolized Patrick Roy. "He was a young guy from Montreal, like me." Brodeur explained. "I idolized him because he came in (to the NHL) so young and he showed he could do the job. He made me see the possibility of doing it myself."
Brodeur played his junior hockey for the St-Hyacinthe Laser of the QMJHL and at the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, became one of the few goalies to be selected in the first round when the Devils selected him 20th overall. After a year with Utica in the AHL Brodeur became New Jersey's starting goalie. His first game was against Boston, a night indelibly stamped in his memory. "I was 19, and I couldn't stop a puck in warm-up. The coaches came up to me and said, 'Don't worry, kid, just go out there and have fun.' So I did. The first shot I stopped was a long one by Don Sweeney. We won the game 4-2."
Brodeur brought tremendous stability to the Devils. He challenged shooters, and had fantastic mobility from side to side and high crease-to-goal line. With positioning, he was so strong that he did not need to flop. He relied on being in the right place at the right time. Because of his early years as a forward, he was also among the very best skaters and stickhandlers in the league.
Brodeur had always dreamed of scoring a goal in the NHL and on April 17, 1997 he was able to make that dream come true. During a playoff game against the Montreal Canadiens, with his team up by two goals, he fired the puck the length of the ice and into the net to ensure a 5-2 win in the opening game of the series. Until that point, Ron Hextall was the only goaltender to record a playoff goal.
Due to the NHL lockout, 1994-95 season was shortened to 48 games and began in January. Brodeur and the Devils finished the season with an unspectacular .500 record, but in the playoffs they got stronger and stronger and Brodeur took his playing to another level. In the final against Detroit he allowed just seven goals in four games and the Devils won the Stanley Cup in a clean sweep.
Brodeur won 300 career games in near-record quickness and 14 times he recorded seasons of 30-or-more wins. He won the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender for the first time in 2003 and would repeat the victory the following season. In 2006-07, Brodeur set an NHL record with 48 wins. He also led the league with 12 shutouts. At the NHL awards that summer, the veteran netminder was once again named the Vezina Trophy winner. The following season he posted a 44-27-6 record with a sparkling 2.17 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage and was among the league leaders in victories, and minutes played. During the season he became only the second goaltender in NHL history to record 500 wins, following only Patrick Roy. He extended NHL records by recording his third consecutive and seventh career 40-win season, and 10th consecutive campaign with 70-or-more games. He was awarded the Vezina for the fourth time in five seasons.
Approaching the end of the 2008-09 season, Brodeur was closing in on Patrick Roy's all-time victories record. On March 17, 2009 he posted win number 552, setting the new record.
The 2009-10 season would be a record shattering year for Brodeur. In December he broke another of Patrick Roy's records when he played in game number 1,030 and just days later he broke Terry Sawchuk's long-held shut-out record. With a 2-0 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, Brodeur earned shut-out number 105, breaking the record many thought would stand forever.
In addition to the records, Brodeur led the NHL in wins in 2009-10 with 45 and had the league's third best goals against average.
On the international stage, Brodeur represented Canada twice at both the World Cup of Hockey and World Championships and was a four-time Olympian, twice twice taking home the gold medal.
