The 16-year-old goaltender at Shattuck-St. Mary’s boarding school in Fairbault, Minn., is enjoying a successful season as an 11th grader. His style and his stats would undoubtedly draw attention from scouts under ordinary circumstances.

For this enthusiastic young athlete, however, ordinary has a different meaning. His father is an NHL goalie. You may have heard of him. Dad’s name is Martin Brodeur, and he is bursting with pride about his eldest son, Anthony.

"One of the things in my mind is to be able to be with him. I can't wait to have the time to go and help him out, talk to him, be there and watch him. To be part of what he's trying to accomplish," the Devils' 39-year-old goalie said.

“Even if he doesn’t get to the NHL. Even if he goes to college or decides to go the junior route, it’s pretty cool. It’s your son. It’s what I did all my life and what my dad did.”

There have been five father and son goalie combinations who have played in the NHL, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. One of them is former Devils goalie Bob Sauve and his son, Philippe. But none of those fathers is the all-time winningest goalie in the NHL and a future Hall of Famer.

“It has to be difficult because of the nature of people,” Brodeur said. “(Anthony) gets it all the time. He says, ‘Dad, you should’ve heard what this kid told me the other day.’ But he had it from an early age.

“One of his coaches in minor hockey said, ‘If you want, we’ll just put his first name on the back of his jersey.’ I said, ‘He’s going to have to live with this. There’s no way you’re not putting my last name there.’ ”

According to Brodeur, Anthony is 5-10, 175 pounds, although he is listed as 5-11, 177. Dad was 5-10, 168 at that age.

In 18 games for the prep squad, Anthony is 15-2-1 with four shutouts and a 2.29 goals-against average. Late last month he helped Shattuck win the gold at the first world sport school challenge in Calgary. His style?

“He’s in-between. He’s a little more new school than me, that’s for sure,” Brodeur said. “He asks a lot of questions. More and more, actually. He watches highlights of me and other goalies and asks questions about different styles. What kind of equipment I wear and how I wear it. How I get prepared for a game. It’s pretty cool.

“He likes that Pekka Rinne, I think. I had to ask for a stick for him.”

Will he stack his pads like dad?

“For sure he will,” Brodeur said. “If not, I’m going to take his name off.”

Anthony’s grandfather, Dennis, was an Olympic goalie for Canada. He did not play in the NHL.

Brodeur’s 15-year-old twin sons — William and Jeremy — are also at Shattuck playing for the midget AA squad. Jeremy is also a goalie with a true butterfly style. William is a defensive-minded forward.

Dad would like to see all their games, but at least for the rest of this season he has his own commitments.

PASSING DOWN THE PADS

Two of Martin Brodeur's son are goalies. There have been five father and son goalie combinations who have played in the NHL.

Sam LoPresti (Blackhawks 1940-42)

Pete LoPresti (North Stars, Oilers 1974-81)

Dennis Riggin (Red Wings 1959-63)

Pat Riggin (Flames, Caps,

Penguins, Bruins 1979-88)

Bob Johnson (Blues, Penguins 1972-75)

Brent Johnson (Blues, Coyotes,

Caps, Penguins 1998-present

Ron Grahame (Bruins,

Kings, Nordiques 1977-81)

John Grahame (Bruins, Lightning,

Hurricanes 1999-2008)

Bob Sauve (Sabres, Red Wings,

Blackhawks, Devils 1976-89)

Philippe Sauve (Avalanche, Flames,

Coyotes, Bruins 2003-06)

CRISIS MODE

The guess is that even if Montreal Canadiens interim coach Randy Cunneyworth learns French better than Maurice Chevalier, he won’t be back behind the team’s bench next season. Whether or not Cunneyworth is to blame, the Habs are in trouble.

Captain Brian Gionta may be finished for the season after undergoing surgery Wednesday to repair a torn right biceps. Center Scott Gomez, whose salary is $7.5 million this season, has yet to score a goal.

And then there was the Mike Cammalleri controversy.

Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier told reporters he’d been working on a trade since last month to add some size to Montreal’s lineup, but it was curious that Cammalleri was sent to the Calgary Flames for Rene Bourque the day after he knocked the atmosphere around the Habs.

Cammalleri told LaPresse on Wednesday night the Canadiens had developed a “losing mentality” and called them a squad that thinks it “needs to play perfect to win. We prepare for our games like losers. We play like losers. So it’s no wonder why we lose.”

Bell Centre fans directed boos at Cammalleri, who is on a six-year, $30 million contract. “I’ve come to know what to expect from the crowd. You’ve got to be sensitive to the fact that Canadiens fans live and die with their team,” he said. “If anything, you can identify with how they feel. They’re not happy I wasn’t disappointed (at being booed). More so I probably expected it.”

Cammalleri was pulled out of Thursday’s game against the Boston Bruins after the second period and sent back to the team’s hotel.

“Usually you see (players traded) before games, after a pre-game skate, after games you kind of see guys pulled off a plane or bus, but that’s the first time I’ve seen it during a game. So it was a unique circumstance for sure,” Cammalleri said.

“We’re in the business of performing and winning, and our team wasn’t where we wanted it to be this year. I think we’ve all expressed our displeasure with that. So you do the math and you say people are going to move. Coaches were moved and the next step is players.”

ETC.

Word out of Philadelphia is that Middletown native James van Riemsdyk may be traded if the Flyers make a move to strengthen themselves for the playoffs. They'd like to get defenseman Ryan Suter from Nashville, but might not give up van Riemsdyk without knowing if they could sign Suter beyond this season. GM Paul Holmgren has spoken to Toronto's Brian Burke about working out a deal. Burke is believed to be among those GMs who still feel van Riemsdyk can be a productive NHLer.

After spending $51 million over nine years to sign goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, the Flyers aren’t so sure it was a prudent move. Holmgren may even be shopping for another goalie. As Cam Cole of the National Post said: Bryzgalov is a lot better on camera (in HBO’s 24/7) than in goal.

Speaking of trades, Washington Capitals defenseman Jeff Schultz seems to be out of the picture since Dale Hunter replaced Bruce Boudreau as coach. He's played in only two of the last 14 games and his minutes in both were single digits. Schultz, who has two more years on his contract with a cap hit of $2.75 million per season, said he hasn't requested a trade and would just like the chance to play. Hey, in 2009-10, when the Caps won the President's Trophy, he was a top four D.

What an odd night Tuesday at Montreal's Bell Centre. It started with Canadiens goalie Carey Price being recognized before the game for being named one of the team's three stars most often in December and ended with St. Louis Blues goalie Jaroslav Halak receiving an ovation from the crowd after shutting out the home team.

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Halak raised his stick in acknowledgement as he skated off the ice before two St. Louis teammates blocked the gate and pushed him back out. Halak, trade by the Habs to the Blues in 2010, circled near center ice with his stick still raised. “I’ll never forget this moment,” he told the St. Louis Post Dispatch. “It will stay with me forever.” It was the first shutout for a Blues goalie in Montreal since Wayne Stephenson did it on Nov. 10, 1973.

Ron Caron, who as Blues GM signed Brendan Shananan as a restricted free agent and was forced by an arbitrator to give Scott Stevens to the Devils as compensation in 1991, died Monday night.

He won six Stanley Cups with the Canadiens as an assistant GM and head scout before going to the Blues in 1983.

Caron was known for his tirades in press boxes, knocking holes in ceilings, cursing and ripping phones off the wall.

During one game at the Meadowlands in the early 1980s, Caron was screaming loudly from the press box when nearby former Devils radio play-by-play man Larry Hirsch told him to shut up. The two nearly came to blows. “I can definitely say — and I mean this in only a most special and kind way — that the good Lord broke the mold when he made Mr. Caron,” ex-Blues player and coach Brian Sutter said. “And when he did, the Big Guy upstairs said, ‘We’re never going to do that again.’ Ron Caron was a very special man.”

After being the target of ridicule when it was revealed he suffered back spasms while sitting down to eat his wife's "delicious pancakes," Los Angeles Kings forward Dustin Penner responded via an L.A. blog site: "Right off the bat, I'd like to clarify a few things. For example, they were vegetarian pancakes. The injury happened as I was sitting down to eat, not mid-bite. And yes, I did finish them. There has been some feedback from the media as a whole regarding the lack of transparency involving injuries. So, I decided to be candid. First and foremost, I think we can agree that having delicious pancakes that your wife made for breakfast, for a 1 p.m. game, is not out of the norm. Secondly, SOBS (sudden onset back spasms) can occur at any moment, doing just about anything you can think of, and is a very serious issue. Those who have experienced SOBS know it is no laughing matter.

I’m a little hurt, to tell you the truth, that the plight of my people isn’t being taken seriously. Frankly, I don’t mind the attention and there’s no such thing as bad press, right? Apparently, I made it onto ESPN’s Around the Horn and joined Kings’ ATH alumnus Dustin Brown (see: water bottle incident) and have also became a twitter sensation overnight (with hashtag pennercakes). So, I’m hoping to get an endorsement from IHOP or Denny’s.”

The 2013 Winter Classic probably will be in Michigan, and 110,000-seat Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor is the leading site. But Comerica Park, favored by some, will be pushed by Detroit Red Wings owner Mike Ilitch.

Rich Chere: rchere@starledger.com; twitter.com/Ledger_NJDevils