That silence you heard at about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday was most of the Tri-State having no idea that Martin Brodeur had just become the NHL's greatest goaltender of all time.
The record is like Ron Burgundy in that it's kind of a big deal, but unfortunately only in hockey circles will the Devils star get the credit he deserves.
Playing before a packed Prudential Center, Brodeur held off a late push by visiting Chicago to earn a 3-2 victory, the 552nd of his career, all 15 seasons of which have been spent with the Devils.
Brodeur had tied the record over the weekend in his hometown of Montreal, where his boyhood idol Patrick Roy won many games with the Canadiens. And it was Roy, now a Hall of Famer, whom Brodeur passed Tuesday night.
Looking ahead, Brodeur might need his own personal deejay with the records he'll be setting. He's four shutouts away from the all-time mark of 103, held by Terry Sawchuk, and with plenty of good goaltending still ahead of him, seems a lock to not only set that mark but stretch his all-time win total to 600.
And Brodeur, who's helped the Devils to three Stanley Cup championships, is just 13 games away from playing in the 1,000th of his career.
