Martin Brodeur will not play, still nursing injured right elbow
Off to their worst start in 27 years, the New Jersey Devils (4-9-1) got more bad news on Friday, 5 November, when starting goaltender Martin Brodeur ruled himself unfit to play. The 38-year-old net-minder, who is suffering from an injury to his right elbow,
will miss (at the least) Friday’s contest against the New York Rangers.
According to ESPN.com, the veteran goalie, who has spent his entire career with the Devils, will be unable to perform for the time being, but is optimistic about the future. “I’m fine,” Brodeur said, “just not ready to play today. I thought I was going to be
OK but a little pain on the elbow.”
The league’s leader for all-time wins as a goalie removed himself from a game against Chicago this past Wednesday, after a shot from the Blackhawks’ right wing, Patrick Kane, connected with the elbow during the second period. On Friday morning, Brodeur tried
to give it a go, practicing with the team. However, with the remainder of the season in mind, the goalie apparently felt as though the risk of suiting up against the Rangers was not worth the reward.
“The first couple of shots, even shooting the puck was fine and I just swatted a puck out, like just a rebound, and kind of just felt a sharp pain and I said, ‘ah, it's not worth it,’” he told the media after the practice session. Brodeur reiterates that the
issue with his health has little if nothing to do with stabilizing his stick, but rather, with wielding and controlling it.
“It’s the elbow,” he asserted. “I’ve got plenty of strength on my hand, on my fingers, everything’s fine, the wrist. It’s just extending my arm with having a weight at the end. It’s just too much of a sharp pain for me on the elbow.” Although he is hopeful
that the pain will subside within the next few days, the goalie is aware that there are no guarantees, and suggests that he won’t be taking the ice again until he’s ready.
“If that sharp pains doesn’t go away there’s no way for me to play,” Brodeur said. “But I believe it’s going to go away. It got better from the first time I got hit to today. It’s not something that I’m going to hurt worse. It’s not like a pull or anything.
It’s just a bruise. Whenever I’m going to be able to deal with the pain I’ll be back. Hopefully the four days of rest will help that out.”
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