Martin Brodeur will make his Blues debut tonight against the Predators.
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Imagine your favorite player in a different jersey. Tonight, that’s something Devil fans will experience. In between watching their team take on the Maple Leafs, their curiosity will peak when Martin Brodeur makes his Blues debut against the Predators. As a rival fan blogger, it’s weird to see Brodeur #30 on a Blues note. It’ll take some getting used to.

At least he isn’t playing on a rival in the same conference. The Devils don’t see St. Louis the rest of the season. The teams already met twice last month. So, there won’t be a scenario of Brodeur versus Cory Schneider unless the teams play for the Stanley Cup. At this point, that’s very unlikely with the Devils struggling to win consistently. They’re winless in five and coach Pete DeBoer is on the hot seat. Not exactly the way it was supposed to play out following Brodeur’s sendoff last April.

While the Devils try to figure it out, Brodeur’s turned the page. The 42-year old future Hall of Famer will man the net for St. Louis. It came about due to Blues starter Brian Elliott being out indefinitely with a knee injury. With heir apparent Jake Allen left, it created an opportunity for Brodeur. Following a successful tryout, he signed. Now, the all-time leader in wins (688), shutouts (124) and appearances (1,259) will have the chance to go out on his own terms. It comes at the expense of spending his entire career with the only team he’s known.

“I’ve been waiting for a great opportunity, and it came from the Blues,” Brodeur said in an interview that appeared on the Blues website. “I just want to have fun. I’ve got nothing to prove to myself. I just want to go out and enjoy the season and enjoy the winning like I was able to do in New Jersey for a lot of years.”

“I’m living this dream and when you are living a dream and you really enjoy what you do, it’s hard to let go sometimes.”

A three-time Stanley Cup winner, Brodeur wants to add to his legacy. With 700 wins within reach and the potential to win another Cup on one of the West’s best teams, it looks like a good fit. Despite a lot of success, the Blues have never won a championship. In fact, they haven’t returned to the Stanley Cup Final since appearing their first three seasons during expansion (1968-70) losing twice to the Canadiens and once to the Bruins. Last Spring, they blew a 2-0 lead to the Blackhawks getting eliminated in six in a disappointing first round. Adding a veteran who knows what it takes to win can’t hurt.

“He’s here to see if he wants to keep playing hockey and he wants to finish it on his terms, on his note,” St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock said. Ironically he was the losing coach in 2000 when Brodeur backstopped the Devils to a second Cup over the Stars.

“His legacy (with New Jersey) is not going to be affected by this. He’s going to finish it on his terms hopefully and whatever is written, it’s going to be written about how many Cups, how many wins, how many shutouts (he has)…he’s got numbers nobody is going to touch, and good on him, because he’s earned and deserved every bit of it.”

Regardless of who you root for, it’ll be hard not to want to see Brodeur do well. Given his decline the last couple of seasons which saw him criticized for playing too much last year, it’s a chance to write a final chapter. Easily one of the top five all-time greatest goalies, he’ll have the final word. It’ll be intriguing to see how Hitchcock handles the situation. One which is worth watching for the sheer excitement.

I can’t speak for anyone else. But I’ll catch as many Blues games Brodeur starts just to see how he does. The entertainment value will be through the roof. It still will be odd to see him in another jersey. It would be like Derek Jeter finishing his Yankee career on another roster. Something you can’t picture. The closest comparison I can come up with is Michael Jordan playing for the Wizards. He’ll always be a Bull with those six NBA titles. GOAT. Peyton Manning is concluding his career with the Broncos after a memorable career with the Colts.

In sports, these things happen. Like Brodeur said, it’s not easy to let go. Not everyone is Mariano Rivera or Jeter. We’ve seen Andy Pettite come out of retirement. With Marty, he feels he has something left to give. He’s allowed to go out on his own terms. Whatever happens, it’ll be fun to watch.