The New Jersey Devils retired Martin Brodeur's No. 30 jersey during a pre-game ceremony Tuesday night.
After serenading the NHL's winningest goalie with chants of "Mar-ty, Mar-ty, Mar-ty" and "Marty is better," the sellout crowd at the Prudential Center gave Brodeur a standing ovation that lasted more than two minutes and grew louder by the second.
The man. The myth. Our legend. @martinbrodeur. #SaluteMB30 https://t.co/ox5525n3IQ
— @NJDevils
Brodeur tried to start his thank you speech only to be drowned out by the roar. He eventually walked away from the podium and waved to the crowd, players from the Edmonton Oilers and Devils, who sat on their benches during the ceremony, and simply soaked it all in.
It was fitting for a man who set NHL records for games played, shutouts, playoff shutouts, number of 30- and 40-win seasons and most wins in a season.
While not in attendance, Arizona Coyotes forward Shane Doan paid tribute to Brodeur from afar. They were teammates on Canadian squads at the 2004 World Cup (gold medal), 2005 world championship (silver) and 2006 Winter Olympics.
"Getting to play against you was incredible, playing with you was phenomenal." Doan on @MartinBrodeur #SaluteMB30https://t.co/ays0za2vb1
— @ArizonaCoyotes
Brodeur was selected 20th overall by New Jersey in the 1990 NHL entry draft and earned three Stanley Cups with the club, in 1995, 2000 and 2003. He became the fourth player in Devils history to have his number retired, behind defencemen Scott Stevens, Ken Daneyko and Scott Niedermayer.
In 2009, Brodeur passed Patrick Roy for the most regular-season wins by a goaltender with his 552nd, and he never looked back. He retired at the end of the 2014-15 season with a total of 691 wins — all but three with New Jersey.
Devils forward Patrik Elias paid tribute to his longtime teammate.
Patrik Elias: "You were a great leader & a great teammate. No doubt in my mind you were the heart & soul of this organization." #SaluteMB30
— @NJDevils
Brodeur followed up his wins record by passing Terry Sawchuk to set the new bar for most regular-season shutouts with his 104th. He added another 20 before calling it a career.
Brodeur is tied for the fifth-most Vezina Trophy wins as the top goalie in 2002-03, 2003-04, 2006-07 and 2007-08.
He also holds the record for most single-season wins with 48 in 2006-07 and the most playoff shuts at 24. On top of all the NHL accolades, Brodeur is a two-time Olympic gold medallist (2002, 2010) with Canada.
Here's to you, @MartinBrodeur https://t.co/ZFOuQhcBsX #SaluteMB30
— @NJDevils
One final salute and it's time for #NJDevils Hockey! #EDMvsNJD is underway! #SaluteMB30 http://pic.twitter.com/VC6tFyY53f
— @NJDevils
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