Having played the final seven games of his NHL career with the Blues, Martin Brodeur chose to hold his retirement press conference in St. Louis on Thursday.



Here is a transcript of the press conference (with thanks to Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch):

Brodeur: "Welcome everyone. Thank you so much for being here. I just want to take the opportunity to thank everybody that sent me messages in the last 48 hours. A lot of people, I didn't respond back to you guys, but there's a reason for it. But all my friends, my ex-teammates, my present teammates, I really appreciate the kind words. This is a great day for me, I'm excited to start a new chapter in my hockey career. This is something I've been thinking about for a long time, and this is a great opportunity that the St. Louis Blues' organization — Tom Stillman and Doug Armstrong — are giving me and trusting me. In the same token, this is going to be something as close (to being) a hockey player (as possible). I'm going to be involved with the hockey operations and being close with the guys, and the coaches and the managers. It's going to be a great challenge for me.

"I know you want to hear about my career a little bit. It was a good decision for me to make, something that throughout the year, you know July 1 came and didn't get really many opportunities. I was a little selective on the teams that I wanted to play for. Time went by and I was really thinking about retirement. It came November, I wanted to play, but I knew the opportunity would have been a little harder. Finally, I got a call from one of the teams at the top of my list, the St. Louis Blues. I jumped in right away, had blast. For the month and a half I was here, I was treated with as much respect as anybody else. They really took me in in their family and for me that meant a lot. When the goalie situation got healthy, and I think everybody has to understand that there was no promises from the organization towards me, they have two solid goaltenders and so for me to come in and help them out was a great opportunity to get back in the game and see if I still like it and still can play the game. Both questions were answered. I know can play and I know I still can have fun with this game. For me, just the fact that they got healthy was harder for me to stay around. I'm a competitive guy, it was hard to stay on the sideline, and that's why I decided to take my retirement. Anyway, thank you for being here. I'd love to answer some questions. I'm sure a couple New Jersey questions will be out there."

When you took the leave of absence, what eventually made up your mind that it was time to retire?

"Well, just because of the goalie situation. We had conversations, with Army and I, we had a lot of discussions about what was going to happen in the future. They were going to go with the two goalies, and they wanted me to be around, and they welcomed me to stay around. At one point, I just felt in the way a little bit. I was (joking), it was almost dangerous for me to practice, and not get run over by line rushes. I was just in the way as the third goalie. So that's what made me kind of say, 'Well, let's take a step back, let's move away from the game a little bit.' They gave me that space and I talked to my family -- my wife, my mom and all the people around me -- and we came to the conclusion, 'This is a great opportunity that I have to start something new,' and I'm really excited."

You said when you arrived in St. Louis that you didn't have closure with your career in New Jersey. Do you have closure now?

"You know what? The thing about hockey for me, I'm really competitive but I love to have fun. And I'm leaving the game with a big smile on my face. I don't think if I would have done that last year, it would have been the case."

What do you hope to achieve in your new position, as far as moving your post-hockey career forward? And secondly, do you have a sense of what time frame you wish to commit, knowing that New Jersey has made it clear they have a position waiting for you?

"For me, it's all about learning. I think I've been on the players' side for so long, I know that side pretty well. But the management part is something that I'm going to learn and I'm excited that I'm going to have solid people around this organization that have been around the management part for a long time. Having Ken Hitchcock as a coach, who I know real well, I think the line of communication with the people is going to be great and for me it's a valuable thing to do in my first year outside of hockey, to really try to flourish and see if I'm going to like this. And the second part, I'm committed to stay here through the end of the season, hopefully as long as we can, that's for sure. There's no commitment one way or the other that I'll go back to New Jersey or stay in St. Louis. I just want to make sure I enjoy what I'm going to do and I'll make a decision when it's time."

How do you envision your role with the Blues?

"For me, I want to make sure I help the team. What I did when I came in a month and a half ago, I wanted to be a leader on the team. It's hard to do when (you're a) brand-new guy. All the players were really open — not just the players but the coaches too — about my input. So you know I felt right away there was value in the locker room, and I don't think it will be no different in the (management) job. For sure I'm not dressing and taking shots in the head anymore; that's the positive of it. But I'm here to help, I'm here to learn, and I'm excited about it."

There was a sentiment, even within the Blues' organization, that if you decided not to play that you would go back to New Jersey. Why did you elect to stay in St. Louis?

"I think for me, the decision to come here, again I didn't know what to expect when I came here. I see this organization going a long way. They're an exciting team to watch, they're extremely talented, and I was happy to be part of it. So whenever they gave me that opportunity, I had conversation with Lou (Lamoriello). And for anybody that thinks me and Lou are not on the same page, everybody is wrong because we stayed in contact before I signed in St. Louis, while I was playing, and while I was hanging out in Florida. That conversation, (Lamoriell) agreed with me that this was probably the best opportunity. It was something that he was not able to give me at this time. I'm really excited to be here and we'll see where that brings that."

During the leave of absence, did you think about playing somewhere else to further your career?

"I played 21 years in one organization and a month and a half somewhere else and I didn't want to (be) moving around. So it's something that I didn't really look at ... interests outside of what the St. Louis Blues offered me. So for me, it was not really a question to go somewhere else. Like I said, I'm leaving the game really, really happy. I had a blast here in St. Louis and I didn't want that experience to be overshadow because I made a different move. To be in the same situation somewhere else did not really attract me that much."

What are your thoughts on falling just short of 700 wins?

"Oh, 691, it's not too bad (laughter). It would have been nice. I would have been nice to be at 700. But again, it is what it is. I wish I could have played more games. It's all these lockouts. I got killed on it."

In case of an emergency, could you play?

"I'm retired now. I don't know what the rules, or whatever, what would happen. That's not the plan at all. I've got my alumni jersey there. I've got a locker here, my pads will be here all the time."

Will it be difficult to be around the guys and not on the ice?

"I think for me it's been a good transition. I've still got the adrenaline going because y ou care so much about the players and you want them to be good and I'm going to learn at the same time. This is what I want to do in the future, try to manage a team. It's just a great opportunity. Traveling with the team, for me keeps me in the game at the same time and not just behind a desk and looking at stats on the computer."

Would you go back to New Jersey sometime?

"We talked and he (Lamoriello) knows that eventually wer're going to cross paths again. If it's next year or two years or three years, I can't answer. I'm doing this now with the St. Louis Blues. I want to learn as much as I can and we'll see where that leads. I may not like this. I might just go and say 'playing golf every day looks a whole lot better than doing this.' I'll make a decision on my future whenever it comes around. Right now I'm going to go all in with this and , not that I needed the blessing of Lou but he understands."

Was it tough being a healthy scratch at the end?

"That's what kind of pushed me to say, it looks like they're going to go with Jake (Allen) and (Brian Elliott). If Els didn't get hurt, I was never going to be here. It was a great opportunity, to not be part of it, that's one of those things, I wanted to help them as much as I can but it's hard when you don't play or you're not around the guys. I stayed a little bit, after a while said, it's not going to change, we had conversations, that's the direction they wanted to take but they wanted me to stay around. I'm 42 years old, I don't need to be in the middle of the ice and avoid people."

Would you play in an emergency?

"I don't think so. There's waivers, there's things, it's complicated for me to come back. That's not the plan. Come back for one game? Nah."

Will it be tough to let go?

"Three years ago I was ready to retire and had a great run in the playoffs. That kind of jolted my career back up. I was able to get a two-year contract. The last two years have been hard, I didn't enjoy it as much. I wanted to go to just one more real good place and enjoy the game, and I was going to leave the game when I was happy and I found that here in St. Louis. I'm happy with it, my decision, if Army wouldn't have called in late November, that press conference would have happened in New Jersey on Jan. 1."

Did you expect to get a job offer from the Blues?

"It was a surprise. For me, making an impression in a month and a half, for him to trust me with this job, I'm pretty excited about it. I didn't expect that at all. I expected it from anothehr team, not that team. Like I said, when I came in, I came in all in. I didn't hide, I went in and I was myself toward the GM and the coaches and the players and it really paid off for them to give me that kind of offer."

When did they make the offer?

"We talked and there was a couple things I could do. He wanted me to stay as a player, but for me, it was getting hard, like you guys could see first hand. Everything happened last week."

After 21 years in New Jersey, is it strange to be announcing your retirement in St. Louis?

"It would have been awkward to retire in New Jersey and take a job in St. Louis. That's kind of the way we went by it. For me, my hockey career is all about the Devils. No one's going to associate me with the Blues as a hockey player. Retirement arrangements will be made for New Jersey in the future. It could be this year, could be next year, I don't know Lou's plan. I'm so appreciative of all the fans there, the organization. It's coming out of left field a little for everyone. I understand, but at the end of the day, it's what I want to do. I'm excited about the challenge. That's why I didn't make a big speech thanking everybody, because nobody was here. There all going to be there when it's time.

"It's not the New York Rangers I'm talking about, it's the St. Louis Blues. That's a thing I never would have done. It's different. New Jersey's always going to be with me everywhere I go, regardless if I make this journey longer. My plan eventually is to go back to where I played most, well, all of my career. It might take a while, who knows. It's a matter of doing what I'm doing right now."

Could your stay in St. Louis last longer than this year?

"It could. I didn't give any guarantees. I signed up to be here till the end of this season, and help them out as much as I can. They might not want me either, we'll see."

So what will a day in your life be like now?

"The plan is touching on a bit of everything. I'm going to be at mostly every practice, be with coaches, overlooking the preparation of practice, really learning every facet of what a general manager needs to know. I'll be with Army on the road, I'm sure when it's time for trades or whatever we'll have some input, talk, and I'll just touch on everything. I'm excited about that. I never thought I wanted to be a coach, but who knows, after I see them go, maybe I'll say that's for me. It's going to be a fun challenge."

What are you most proud of in your career?

"That I stayed healthy that long. For sure, the wins are the ones, hyou play hockey you might as well win, as a goalie anyway, but the most important thing is the win record I have. But again, my durability is something I took a lot of pride in, I was able to play games over and over and over and they add up to 1,200 and something games, plus playoff games, and it's hard to do. For a guy that was not supposed to be in great shape, I was able to get it done."

Are any of your records catchable?

"It's going to be hard, but records are there ... now they're set, they're done, they're not a moving target any more, they see where it's at. It could happen. There are some great goalies, I hope somebody comes close. It was great for me to shake Patrick's (Roy) hand when I broke his record, he was really excited about it. If it happens, and I'm not too old, it may take a while for certain guys, but we never know."

Do you think that just coming off the ice, knowing the players, will help you in your job with Doug Armstrong and Ken Hitchcock?

"We look for the character of players and right now we're firing on all cylinders, too bad the All-Star Game came at a bad time. The input on players, I'm still going to be close to the guys. I'm not an enemy to anybody. I'm not a threat to any of these players, I want to be their friend, I want to be around them but there are certain boundaries that are going to be different because of the role I have. I was just with all the guys, it's like nothing. They're all excited, they all want me to be in the back of the plane. I don't know about that one."

Can the Blues win the Stanley Cup?

"I think so. We're built in a great fashion, playing in a tough conference, and that's the only thing we have to look at, to be able to compete against the top teams, the depth of scoring, the quality of goaltending, everything is there. Some of the puck moving defensemen we have. I was here a month and a half (and) I was so impressed I took a job with them."

Rich Chere may be reached at rchere@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Ledger_NJDevils. Find NJ.com on Facebook.