Making use of this years All-Star break, the St. Louis Blues management decided to make some changes.
On Jan. 29, after playing seven games in St. Louis, goaltender Martin Brodeur announced his retirement.
After goaltender Brian Elliott returned to the lineup, it was clear to Brodeur that he was in the way as a third goalie. It became difficult for him to sit on the sideline, which brought his thoughts back to retirement.
Although Brodeur spent the last 22 years on the ice, he will continue his impact in hockey a different way. He announced on Thursday that he will take the position of Senior Adviser to General Manager Doug Armstrong.
“I’m here to help, I’m here to learn and I’m excited about it,” Brodeur said.
In 22 years of playing, 21 of which with the New Jersey Devils, Brodeur holds the record for wins (691), shutouts (125), games played (1,266) and minutes played (74,438). Among these, he is also the only NHL goalie to score a game winning goal.
Brodeur’s retirement leaves the Blues with the goaltending duo of Brian Elliott and Jake Allen. Who, since the conclusion of the 2015 All-Star Game, haven’t lost a game.
With the trade deadline edging closer and closer, the Blues decided to take advantage of it. Before the All-Star break ended, they announced the trade of forward Maxim Lapierre for Pittsburgh center Marcel Goc. Goc has played in 10 seasons, recording 184 points (74 goals, 110 assists) in 604 regular season games.
“They have great guys who help out a lot,” Goc said. “They make it as easy as possible for us to get that transition done and get acclimated and comfortable living here.”
In his first four games as a Blue, Goc has recorded one assist.
“This [trade] allows us to have the two guys who play there to be hunters and then we’ve got a guy who’s backing up the hunting and playing that in between the dots role that we think we need from that positon,” Head Coach Ken Hitchcock said.
The news of Brodeur’s retirement will not soon be forgotten. With his imminent induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame, his time in St. Louis will not be blown over.
“I didn’t know what to expect when I came here, but I see this organization going a long way,” Brodeur said. “They’re an exciting team to watch and extremely talented and I was happy to be part of it.”