Martin Brodeur now has two Olympic gold medals to go with his three Stanley Cup championships, but the Devils goalie admitted on Monday that his medal from the just-completed 2010 Games in Vancouver doesn't mean as much to him as the gold he won in Salt Lake City eight years ago.
That's because Brodeur lost his designation as Canada's No. 1 goalie after a preliminary round loss to Team USA and spent the rest of the tournament on the bench as Roberto Luongo's backup.
I asked Brodeur if this medal means as much to him as '02.
"No. It's hard. When you don't play, you don't feel as much a part of the team," Brodeur said after rejoining the Devils for practice in San Jose. "I really embraced them as much as I could because I thought that was the right thing to do, but when you participate in winning something it's a lot different than when you're just the best fan of the hockey club tapping guys on the butt when they go off the ice.
"Looking back at it, you go through these things in your career and you have to adjust. Being part of a winning organization (Team Canada) is always really rewarding. I didn't know how I was going to react, but I really got into to it. It was fun to see some of these young guys doing well.
"For Lu, it was his first big game where he was able to come through. The big stage with (Sidney) Crosby scoring the goal. Being part of that, I'm going to look back. He's probably one of the best hockey players and I was with him. For me, I'm a big student of the game and I love playing the game. You have different ways of doing things and this time around it wasn't as rewarding. But it is what it is and I enjoyed myself."
After Luongo played the first game against Germany, Brodeur was the goalie in a shootout victory over Switzerland. But coach Mike Babcock made the switch to Luongo after Team Canada's loss to the U.S.
"It was a decision they made right after the loss against the United States. I knew if I didn't play well it would've been hard for me to keep going," he said. "That's the luxury we had of having Lu there backing me up at that time in the tournament. We were told we needed to play well. You lose a game and it's quick.
"They made the decision and I was fine with it. I had the opportunity of being the guy and I didn't perform well on that day. It's not a big deal because we won the whole thing."
Brodeur said he was angry at first, but decided Team Canada's pursuit of the gold was more important than his own pride.
He said he was OK with the way he benching was handled.
"They were pretty good with me internally," he said. "Whatever was said in the media, I had no clue about that. My father was kind of a little ticked off a bit. But for me, I made it clear I didn't want to hear what they said and the reason why I stopped playing. I didn't want to ruin anything. I was happy to be there.
"I didn't talk to the media. We didn’t have much time to talk to the media. The way it was set up, you walk through everybody and you’re walking with everybody that is playing, so they don’t waste time. They just want to get who is important for that day, for that game. So I didn't have to really answer any questions about it when I was there."
Devils coach Jacques Lemaire, who was a Team Canada assistant coach, knew it was difficult for Brodeur.
"It was. I talked to him. It was difficult for him because he had 15 members of his family there and they wanted to see him play," Lemaire said. "I think he puts this situation behind him. This was the reason why he wanted to fly last night (from Vancouver to San Jose immediately after the gold medal game) and practice with us. He doesn't like it, but he accepts it."
Brodeur's family also made the best of it.
"It was less stressful on everyone," Brodeur reflected. "My dad was happy. There was no pressure. Less pressure, anyway."
The Devils may reap the benefits.
"Well, I should be well-rested now. I shouldn't have to hear for another 5-10 games that I'm tired or play too much," he said half-jokingly. "It puts a lot of things in perspective. I'm excited to get back. It's the stretch run now. So it's going to be good.
"That's exactly what I did to Cujo (Curtis Joseph) in 2002 and won the gold. Then Lu did it the same way. It can't always go rosy. You can't worry about these things too much. We were there for one thing. We were there for our country. I know as an athlete you think about yourself a lot. I did, bit after a while it's over. You have to move on."
I asked him if he would've been able to move on and think team first if he had been a 22-year-old kid and not a mature 37.
"For sure. I was in Nagano and I sat on the bench the whole time there, too," Brodeur said. "Torino (2006 in Italy), that was more my tournament. It didn't work out well. In '02, after one game, it got to be my tournament and (Canada) brought the gold back home.
"It's time for the other goalies to shine. They're 30 years old. They've been waiting for it. I was able to hold off as long as I could. I played one bad game and that's what happens. I'm proud of what I accomplished. For me, being a part and getting respect from everybody over there was a lot of fun."
He was able to appreciate what Devils teammates Zach Parise and Jamie Langenbrunner accomplished in winning a silver medal with the U.S.
"They played unbelievable," Brodeur said. "That's one of the things I felt really bad about. To see their faces. It's a competition and Canada wanted to win. But the way Zach and Jamie performed throughout the tournament, they're good friends and I felt bad for them.
"I told them, 'You're the reason I'm not playing anymore.' They wanted to get some pointers on Luongo. I said, 'I would've given them to you if you hadn't made me sit on the bench for the rest of the tournament.' "
Brodeur revealed that Team Canada singled out Parise as a key for the U.S.
"I was really impressed with Zach, in the meetings the way the guys were talking about him. He's a threat. We feel that way about him. You could tell from other players talking about him that everybody around the league does. That's good."
So, has Brodeur shown off his gold medal to his Devils teammates?
"I will on the plane," he said.