Martin Brodeur didn’t play in Thursday’s 5-2 win over the Blue Jackets and with Wednesday’s trade deadline approaching, it’s unclear how many more times the future Hall of Famer will be in net for the Devils.
But after the victory at the Prudential Center, which helped keep the Devils within striking distance of the East’s final playoff spot, coach Pete DeBoer said Brodeur would get the start Saturday in Uniondale against the Islanders.
As much as Brodeur has meant to the franchise, Patrik Elias made it clear the team’s focus is on staying in contention — not the future of the goalie.
“It’s not our decision,” Elias said, after serving up a perfect pass to Adam Henrique for a short-handed goal that put the Devils up 4-2 and then sealing the win with an empty-netter in the final minute.
“We just go out and play,” Elias said. “We need to win hockey games to get into the playoffs.”
It would figure to be easier to move Brodeur if the Devils fell out of postseason contention before Wednesday. After struggling offensively heading into the Olympic break, they wasted no time scoring Thursday.
Ryane Clowe gave the Devils the lead just over six minutes into their first game back from the break, and then Jaromir Jagr and Henrique followed with power-play goals less than two minutes apart.
But while it seemed as if the Devils might cruise to a victory, Columbus’ Artem Anisimov beat Cory Schneider to make it 3-1 midway through the first. When Marian Gaborik was left unchecked in front of the net halfway through the second, he made it 3-2.
The Blue Jackets then seemed poise to tie the game after Travis Zajac was called for hooking in the final minute of the period, but Elias was able to strip Jack Johnson and flip a perfect pass to Henrique, who was streaking toward the goal.
Henrique, on the breakaway, slipped the puck by Sergei Bobrovsky for the short-handed goal to make it 4-2, and the Devils never looked back.
A repeat performance against the Isles would help Brodeur, who hasn’t played since the Jan. 26 debacle at Yankee Stadium, when he surrendered six goals in two periods and was pulled in a 7-3 loss to the Rangers.
“I’d love to say all the changes we made resulted in five goals and that we’re going to score five goals every game,” DeBoer said. “I think we came back and everyone hit the reset button. I think there were a lot of guys squeezing their stick pretty tightly heading into the break and a break like that has a way of refreshing you.”