[Devils-list] Devils: Brodeur to tend goal by himself awhile
JM2714@aol.com
JM2714@aol.com
Thu, 27 Sep 2001 08:44:53 EDT
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Devils: Brodeur to tend goal by himself awhile 09/27/01BY STEVE POLITI
STAR-LEDGER STAFF
Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur wasn't too fond of the idea that he would
play 60 games this season, instead of his usual 70. Well, how about all 82?
In an odd move yesterday, the Devils sent four goaltenders to their
minor-league affiliate in Albany, N.Y., leaving just one -- Brodeur, of
course -- on the active roster. It won't stay that way for long. General
manager Lou Lamoriello said the team demoted the four young goaltenders "just
to keep it on a consistent basis" until the team picks a backup after the
weekend. Lamoriello didn't want any of the players to think he had an edge
over the competition. "I think they've all been impressive at different
times," he said. "Every one of them has done something good. We won't have
anybody as backup who we don't feel comfortable with." Lamoriello refused to
identify a leading candidate for the job "because things change so quickly,"
but he did single out the recent play of rookie goalie Scott Clemmensen, who
played the third period of a 6-1 victory against the Rangers on Tuesday
night. He made the best save of the game, stopping Ranger forward Petr Nedved
on a penalty shot with 8:10 left. Clemmensen, a Boston College graduate,
holds the school record for shutouts. He will start the Devils'
second-to-last exhibition game in Providence on Friday. Another candidate for
the job, Jean-Francois Damphousse, will split time with Brodeur when the
Devils play Pittsburgh tonight in Albany. "Scott has been a pleasant surprise
because we haven't had him in the organization," Lamoriello said. "But when
you look at it he's had as much experience as the others playing in college,
and over the years a lot of exceptional goaltenders have come out of college.
His success is only surprising, I guess, because we haven't had him in
practice every day." The team also demoted Ari Ahonen, who is likely to start
for the River Rats this season, and Frederic Henry, a 10th-round pick in
1995. Henry started last season as the No. 1 goalie in Albany but struggled
after suffering a groin injury. The Devils reduced their roster to 24
players, assigning 12 to the Albany River Rats. In addition to the four
goaltenders, the Devils demoted defenseman Josef Boumedienne and Mike
Commodore; and forwards Christian Berglund, Max Birbraer, Brian Gionta,
Stanislav Gron, Mike Jefferson and Michael Rupp. "In my mind, they need more
time in the minors," Lamoriello said. "We're extremely pleased with the way
they played in the exhibition season and training camp. They made the most of
it, but they need more time." Many of the young players will soon rejoin the
Devils, who have three preseason games in three days. Why demote them?
"Because I didn't want to practice with 30 guys every day," head coach Larry
Robinson said. Sasha Goc, a 6-2 native of Calw, Germany, remained on the
roster as the team's seventh defenseman -- a job he is not convinced he has
won just yet. "I know the other two guys (Boumedienne and Commodore) are
playing good," Goc said. "I'm here because I'm playing tomorrow and they're
not. I just have to keep working hard and always improving to stay here."
"He's strong, he's steady, he can play a lot of positions," captain Scott
Stevens said. "He's earned the spot."
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<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT COLOR="#0000a0" SIZE=5><B>Devils: Brodeur to tend goal by himself awhile </FONT><FONT COLOR="#0000a0" SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="arial" LANG="0"></B>09/27/01<B>BY STEVE POLITI
<BR>STAR-LEDGER STAFF
<BR></FONT><FONT COLOR="#0000a0" SIZE=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="arial" LANG="0"></B>Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur wasn't too fond of the idea that he would play 60 games this season, instead of his usual 70. Well, how about all 82? In an odd move yesterday, the Devils sent four goaltenders to their minor-league affiliate in Albany, N.Y., leaving just one -- Brodeur, of course -- on the active roster. It won't stay that way for long. General manager Lou Lamoriello said the team demoted the four young goaltenders "just to keep it on a consistent basis" until the team picks a backup after the weekend. Lamoriello didn't want any of the players to think he had an edge over the competition. "I think they've all been impressive at different times," he said. "Every one of them has done something good. We won't have anybody as backup who we don't feel comfortable with." Lamoriello refused to identify a leading candidate for the job "because things change so quickly," but he did single out the recent play of rookie goalie Scott Clemmensen, who played the third period of a 6-1 victory against the Rangers on Tuesday night. He made the best save of the game, stopping Ranger forward Petr Nedved on a penalty shot with 8:10 left. Clemmensen, a Boston College graduate, holds the school record for shutouts. He will start the Devils' second-to-last exhibition game in Providence on Friday. Another candidate for the job, Jean-Francois Damphousse, will split time with Brodeur when the Devils play Pittsburgh tonight in Albany. "Scott has been a pleasant surprise because we haven't had him in the organization," Lamoriello said. "But when you look at it he's had as much experience as the others playing in college, and over the years a lot of exceptional goaltenders have come out of college. His success is only surprising, I guess, because we haven't had him in practice every day." The team also demoted Ari Ahonen, who is likely to start for the River Rats this season, and Frederic Henry, a 10th-round pick in 1995. Henry started last season as the No. 1 goalie in Albany but struggled after suffering a groin injury. <B>The Devils reduced</B> their roster to 24 players, assigning 12 to the Albany River Rats. In addition to the four goaltenders, the Devils demoted defenseman Josef Boumedienne and Mike Commodore; and forwards Christian Berglund, Max Birbraer, Brian Gionta, Stanislav Gron, Mike Jefferson and Michael Rupp. "In my mind, they need more time in the minors," Lamoriello said. "We're extremely pleased with the way they played in the exhibition season and training camp. They made the most of it, but they need more time." Many of the young players will soon rejoin the Devils, who have three preseason games in three days. Why demote them? "Because I didn't want to practice with 30 guys every day," head coach Larry Robinson said. <B>Sasha Goc,</B> a 6-2 native of Calw, Germany, remained on the roster as the team's seventh defenseman -- a job he is not convinced he has won just yet. "I know the other two guys (Boumedienne and Commodore) are playing good," Goc said. "I'm here because I'm playing tomorrow and they're not. I just have to keep working hard and always improving to stay here." "He's strong, he's steady, he can play a lot of positions," captain Scott Stevens said. "He's earned the spot."
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