Martin Brodeur says he's leaning toward not retiring, win or lose

Brodeur owns half of the records in the NHL's history it seems. (Getty Images)

Martin Brodeur is the only member of the Devils team who has been around for all three Stanley Cups that the franchise has won. Going back to 1995, he has backstopped one of the league's most successful franchises.

Now he's back in the Stanley Cup Final to do it again. At 40 years old, many are wondering if this isn't Brodeur's last shot at the Cup, especially if the Devils win their fourth. What better way to go out than on top, right?

Well, Brodeur doesn't sound like a guy who's ready to retire. Speaking on Tuesday at the Stanley Cup Final Media Day, Brodeur talked about how he's having a lot of fun again and that a return is certainly not off the table. Quotes courtesy of Tom Gulitti, Bergen Record:

"I can't say no, but I doubt it," Brodeur said Tuesday of the idea of retiring if the Devils defeat the Kings in the Finals. "I'm really enjoying this. Regardless of what happens in this series, I think we made a great step last year at the end of the year and through this year to have a really good team and a good coaching staff together, and it's fun. To me, it's all about having fun coming to the rink. I know a lot of people say it's great to retire on top, but at the end of the day, when I'm going to say it's over, it's over, I'm not going to come back.

"Hopefully, we won't have to replay that tape [laughing]. I want to make sure I make the right decision. Right now I'm leaning toward coming back. We'll see."

Good to see Marty doesn't want to go all Brett Favre on us ... or Dominik Hasek.

The idea of this being Brodeur's final season before the year began didn't seem unreasonable at all. His .903 save percentage and 2.45 GAA last season weren't what we've come to expect from the sure-fire Hall of Famer and weren't good enough for the Devils, who missed the playoffs. He was particularly bad in the playoffs two years ago when he had a .881 save percentage and 3.01 GAA.

But he rebounded some this year and a lot this postseason. He isn't the sole reason why the Devils are still alive by any means, but Brodeur has been better than good enough. He saved the Devils' tails both in Game 6 against the Rangers and Game 7's overtimes against the Panthers.

Of course, while Brodeur is leaning toward coming back, there is one thing that will make him reconsider.

Martin Brodeur: if there's another long lockout, like last time, there's a really good chance you won't see me come back.

— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) May 29, 2012

There are clearly a ton of reasons to hope for no lockout this summer, and this is just another really good one to add to the list. Nobody wants to see a player like Brodeur bow out because of labor strife.

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