Martin Brodeur: Ever the Flyers' Buzzkill

Watching the Flyers during yesterday’s tilt at the Rock, it struck me that the game was practically a replay of every Flyers-Devils game I watched in the mid- to late-90s. Swap a few players out for Daneyko, Stevens, Niedermayer, LeClair, Lindros, and Dejardins, and you’d have yourself an Atlantic Division classic.

Just as in the old days, the Devils scored first and shut it down. Just as in the old days, Brodeur made himself as impenetrable as ever. Just as in the old days, an extremely talented Flyers offense couldn’t discover a chink in the armor.

Sigh.

Martin Brodeur earned yet another milestone against the Orange and Black: He achieved his 100th career shutout with his victory over the Flyers on Sunday.

Two seasons ago, Brodeur broke Bernie Parent’s record for victories in a single season. And what team was he playing when he rewrote the book? The Flyers. In the Wachovia Center.

I was in the building that night, and I remember watching fans slowly depart from the stadium with facial expressions blending disgust, resignation, and disappointment. It was bad enough that the Flyers had the worst season in franchise history; did we really have to watch Brodeur rub his sheer awesomeness and extended domination of the crease in our faces?

Would it be wrong to hope that Lou Lamouriello keels over, ending the Devils strangle-hold over the Flyers?