Where Does Martin Brodeur Rank Among the All-Time Greats?

Martin Brodeur is one of the greatest goaltenders to ever play in the National Hockey League. In 18 NHL seasons, Brodeur has rewritten the goaltending record book by winning 656 regular season games and posting 119 regular season shutouts. Along the way, the greatest player in the Devils’ history has won three Stanley Cups and won four Vezina Trophies. But while Brodeur is a first ballot Hall of Famer, does his resume have enough to make him the greatest goaltender that every played?

In order to determine whether Brodeur should hold the title of the best goalie to ever play, a comparison was made between Brodeur’s career stats, and the stats of five goaltenders who could also be considered the best goalie to ever play. These goalies were Dominik Hasek, Jacques Plante, Glenn Hall, Terry Sawchuk, and Patrick Roy.

Brodeur vs. Dominik Hasek 

Dominik Hasek in a game in 2007-08 with the Red Wings (Wikimedia)

Although Hasek didn’t play his first NHL game until he was 26 years old, he quickly became one of the best goaltenders of his generation. Hasek played an unorthodox style in net that allowed him to make some of the best saves in history, usually with his back on the ice. Hasek led the league in save percentage for six consecutive seasons (1993-94 to 1998-99), captured six Vezina Trophies between 1993-94 and 2000-01, and became the only goaltender to win two Hart Trophies as league MVP (1996-97 and 1997-98). Although Hasek is planning to return to the NHL next season at age 47, his 389 career wins are 11th in NHL history.

But while Hasek put up great numbers in the regular season, his playoff statistics pale in comparison to Brodeur’s. In nine seasons as his team’s starting goalie in Buffalo and Detroit (not counting the 2007-08 Red Wings, where he didn’t play after Game 4 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals), Hasek’s teams only made it to the Stanley Cup Finals twice, and his only Stanley Cup win came in 2002. In fact, Brodeur almost has as many playoff wins (111) as Hasek as playoff games played (119). Another advantage that Brodeur has above Hasek is his durability. In 15 NHL seasons, Hasek only played 70 or more games once, and 60 or more games four times. In comparison, Brodeur has played 70 or more games in 12 of his 18 NHL seasons, and has eight 40-win seasons, while Hasek only has one.

Edge: Brodeur

Brodeur vs. Jacques Plante

In addition to being the backbone of the last team to win five Stanley Cups in a row, Plante was also an innovator for all goaltenders. Plante was one of the first goaltenders to leave his net and play the puck, an attribute that has been of Brodeur’s greatest strengths throughout his career. Plante was also the first goaltender to wear a mask in an NHL game, a move that revolutionized the position. However, putting aside how he changed the position, Plante’s stats are also remarkable, as he won 437 games (6th in NHL history), won six Stanley Cups, and seven Vezina Trophies.

However, Brodeur has the edge on Plante in a few major categories. First, although Plante played on some of the best teams in history, his career winning percentage (.522) is less than Brodeur’s (.550). Also, in addition to having 200 more wins and a better career goals against average (Brodeur: 2.23, Plante: 2.38), the average number of goals per game scored throughout the NHL in Plante’s best years was lower in Plante’s best years than in Brodeur’s best years.

Edge: Brodeur

Brodeur vs. Glenn Hall

Although Brodeur played in 70 or more games for ten straight seasons, it is Glenn Hall who will be remembered as the NHL’s Iron Man in between the pipes. Between the 1955-56 season, when he was playing for the Detroit Red Wings, and into the 1962-63 season when he was a member of the Chicago Black Hawks, Hall played in 502 consecutive games, all without a mask. Hall’s play on the ice wasn’t too bad either, as he led the Black Hawks to a Stanley Cup in 1961, won 407 games in his NHL career, and also led the expansion St. Louis Blues to three straight Stanley Cup appearances. Hall was also the first goaltender to play in the “butterfly” style that would later be revolutionized by Patrick Roy and used by the majority of NHL goalies today (with Brodeur being one of the exceptions).

While Hall had one of the best careers in league history, his numbers don’t match up to Brodeur’s. Even though Hall led the league in games played eight times, he only led the league in wins four times. On the other hand, Brodeur has led the league in wins nine times despite leading the league in games only six times. Brodeur also won two more Stanley Cups and has one more Vezina Trophy in his career than does Hall. And even though Hall led the league in shutouts six times as opposed to five times for Brodeur, the Devils’ goalie has averaged one shutout for every 10 games of his career, while Hall averaged one shutout for every 10.8 games.

Edge: Brodeur

Brodeur vs. Terry Sawchuk

When Terry Sawchuk passed away at the age of 40, only a few weeks after playing in his final NHL game, he held the records that Brodeur would later go on to break. Sawchuk’s best years in the league were at the beginning of his career, when he led the league in wins for five straight seasons and win three of his four Stanley Cups. In addition to his four Stanley Cups, Sawchuk won four Vezina Trophies, and is the only goaltender besides Brodeur to have over 100 career shutouts. As good as Sawchuk’s overall numbers were, his dominance in the net wasn’t the same after he was traded to the Bruins after the 1954-55 season. Although Sawchuk would return to the Red Wings later in his career, he would only win one more Vezina Trophy and one more Cup over his last 15 seasons.

Brodeur has a leg up on Sawchuk in that his high level of play has continued throughout the majority of his career. Brodeur has been so consistent that even though his best statistical years in terms of goals against average and saver percentage came in the early part of his career, Brodeur won all four of his Vezina Trophies after turning 30 years old. Also, Brodeur only has one losing season in his entire career (2010-11), while Sawchuk had seven losing seasons, and either split the goaltending duties or was the backup goalie for the last six seasons of his career. Brodeur’s durability allowed him to surpass Sawchuk in career wins and shutouts.

Edge: Brodeur

Brodeur vs. Patrick Roy

Patrick Roy is not only one of the greatest goaltenders to ever play, he is also the greatest clutch goalie in the history of the game. Throughout his 18-year career with the Montreal Canadiens and the Colorado Avalanche, Roy won 551 games (2nd all-time), captured four Stanley Cups, and won three Vezina Trophies. Also, although he wasn’t the first goaltender to play the “butterfly” style, Roy modernized the style and most goalies in the league now play in the butterfly.

Although Brodeur has more career wins (even without shootout wins) than Roy, Roy stands out from Brodeur in terms of his play in the playoffs. In addition to having won four Stanley Cups to Brodeur’s three, Roy also beat Brodeur when the two squared off in the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals. In 2001, Roy won his 3rd Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, more than any other player in league history. While Roy has three Conn Smythe Trophies, Brodeur doesn’t have any, and when the Devils won the Stanley Cup in 2003, it was Anaheim Mighty Ducks’ goalie J.S. Giguere who was given the award.

Edge: Roy

Martin Brodeur is one of the top five goalies to ever play in the NHL. His records are undisputed, and it is unlikely that there will be another goalie who plays the way he does. However, he is not the best goalie to ever play.

Note: Feel free to comment below about who you think is the best goalie ever. As in any historical discussion about sports, there are many opinions and ways to rank all-time greats, and I would love to continue this discussion about where Brodeur ranks in NHL history.

 

 

 

6 thoughts on “Where Does Martin Brodeur Rank Among the All-Time Greats?”

  1. Want to talk goalies based on numbers? Add Dryden.

    Awards like first team all-star and Conn Smythe mean a lot more than wins in a season for judging the greatest goalie across generations.

  2. Had calcuated these before the Finals started due to a discussion on another page. Have updated tonight to account for the first 3 games of the Finals.

    All-time stats:

    Regular Season
    GAA: Roy 2.54, Hasek 2.20, Brodeur 2.23
    Save Pct: Roy .910, Hasek .922 (best all-time), Brodeur .913
    Games: Roy 1029, Hasek 735, Brodeur 1191
    Minutes played: Roy 60,226, Hasek 42,836, Brodeur 70,028
    Wins: Roy 551, Hasek 389, Brodeur 656
    Win Pct.: Roy .535, Hasek .529, Brodeur .551
    Shutouts: Roy 66, Hasek 81, Brodeur 119
    Shutouts per games played: Roy .06, Hasek .11, Brodeur .10

    Shots faced:

    Roy 28,349, Hasek 20,220, Brodeur 29,915
    Shots faced per games played: Roy 27.6, Hasek 27.5, Brodeur 25.1
    Shots faced per minute played: Roy .470, Hasek .472, Brodeur .427

    Goals against:

    Roy 2546, Hasek 1572, Brodeur 2603
    per minutes played: Roy .042, Hasek .037, Brodeur .037
    per shots faced: Roy .090, Hasek .078, Brodeur .087

    Playoff stats

    Playoff GAA: Roy 2.30, Hasek 2.02, Brodeur 2.01
    playofff Save pct: Roy .918, Hasek .925, Brodeur .919
    Playoff Games: Roy 247, Hasek 119, Brodeur 199
    Playoff minutes played: Roy 15,205, Hasek 7,317, Brodeur 12,538
    Playoff Wins: Roy 151, Hasek 65, Brodeur 111
    Playoff Win Pct.: Roy .611, Hasek .546, Brodeur .550
    Playoff Shutouts: Roy 23, Brodeur 24, Hasek 14
    Playoff shutouts per games played: Roy .09, Hasek .12, Brodeur .12

    shots faced:

    Roy 7145, Hasek 3283, Brodeur 5,186
    Per games played: Roy 28.9, Hasek 27.5, Brodeur 25.7
    per minute played: Roy .470, Hasek .449, Brodeur .414

    Goals Against: Roy 584, Hasek 246, Brodeur 421
    per minutes played: Roy .038, Hasek .034, Brodeur .034
    per shots faced: Roy .082, Hasek .075, Brodeur .081

    Awards:

    Vezina Trophies (leagues best goalie): Roy 3 (89, 90, 92), Hasek 6 (94, 95, 97, 98, 99, 2001), Brodeur 4 (03, 04, 07, 08)

    Hart Trophies (League MVP): Roy 0, Hasek 2 (97, 98), Broduer 0

    Dunno about the other 2 but Hasek was also nominated for the Hart Trophy 3 other years but didn’t win: 94 (Fedorov), 95 (Lindros) and 99 (Jarg)

    Conn Smythes (Playoff MVP) Roy 3 (86, 93, 01), Hasek 0, Brodeur 0

    Stanley Cups: Roy 4 (86, 93, 96, 01), Hasek 2 (02, 08), Brodeur 3 (95, 00, 03)

    Lester B. Pearson Awards (most outstanding player in the regular season as judged by the members of the NHL Players Association): Roy 0, Hasek 2 (97, 98). Brodeur 0

    William Jennings Trophy (Team with least goals against in regular season, sometimes shared with backup*): Roy 5 (87*, 88*, 89*, 92, 02), Hasek 3 (94*, 01, 08*), Brodeur 5 (97*, 98, 03 (tied with Cechmanek), 04, 10)

    NHL First All-Star Team: Roy 4 (89, 90, 92, 02), Hasek 6 (94, 95, 97, 08, 99, 01), Brodeur 3 (03, 04, 07)

    NHL 2nd All-Star team: Roy 2 (88, 91), Hasek 0, Brodeur 4 (97, 98, 06, 08)

    NHL All-Rookie Team: Roy (86), Hasek (92), Brodeur (94)

    Rookie of the Year: none for Roy or Hasek, Brodeur in 1994

    All-Star game appearences: Roy 11 (88, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 97, 98, 01, 02, 03), Hasek 6 (96, 97, 98, 99, 00 (did not play due to injury), 02), Brodeur 10 (96, 97, 98, 99, 00, 01, 03, 04, 07, 08)

    Olympic Gold Medals Roy 0, Hasek 1 (98), Brodeur 2 (02, 10)

    Hasek was basically the Sabres entire team from 1997-2001, which is when he had his best years. The Sabres leading scorer in that span was Miroslav Satan, and his best defensmen were Alexei Zhitnik, Richard Smehlik, Jason Woolley, Jay McKee, and James Patrick

    Brodeur thrived in a trap-based system with defensemen like Scott Stevens, Scott Neidermayer, Brian Rafalski, and Ken Daneyko.

    Also, Brodeur only topped a .920 Save pct for a season 3 times in his career. Hasek did it 8 times, 5 times being .930 or higher.

    Roy is a different story. I had him in these calcuations because I was discussing the Roy/Hasek/Brodeur debate on another site.

  3. this is a debate I have found myself in many times. I think what I’ve come to is he’ll be the best statistical goaltender ever in the NHL, but Roy will go down as the greatest of all time. ( I have not watched enough of Tretiak’s successes, I only ever see the final game of the Summit Series and the loss to the US in 1980) The difference comes in that Roy forever changed goaltending and there is a lot to be said for accomplishing that feat. I love Marty and while his puck handling is super human, it is just the perfection of an existing skill not the revolution of the position. I do not however buy into the “Brodeur had better defense” argument that is out there. Yes he had the likes of Stevens, Daneyko, and Niedermeyer, but he never had the offensive support Roy did. Patrick could have an off game and still get the victory 7-6, but if Marty let in more than 2 or 3 he had no chance. And I believe it is harder to win knowing that you need to be stellar or you have no shot. Either way, I am just pumped I got to see the two legends play.

    •  That’s a very good point, Jeff. For this list, I kept it to NHL goalies only, but there is no doubt about how great Tretiak was. I would have loved to seen how Tretiak would have done playing in the NHL and the numbers he would have put up.

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