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Brodeur leaves game early with injury

New Jersey Devils v New York Rangers

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 09: Martin Brodeur #30 of the New Jersey Devils stretches prior to the game against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on April 9, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Jonathan Klein/Getty Images)

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Fans in New Jersey may have felt their heart skip a beat when Martin Brodeur left tonight’s game vs. Los Angeles with “upper body soreness.” Brodeur had stopped 10 of the 11 shots he saw in the first period; after seeing a barrage of action to start the game, the Devils (and Brodeur) settled down and only gave up a single goal.

With about eight minutes left in the first period. After making a scrambling save while going to his right, he went to the bench to see the trainer at the next stoppage. He stayed in the net for the rest of the first period (and saw limited action), but did not return to the net for the second period. Johan Hedberg took his place between the pipes for the Devilsl while Brodeur took a spot on the end of the Devils bench. For optimists, the simple fact that he was able to return to the bench and was smiling leads one to believe that the injury isn’t that serious.

Chris Botta from the New York Times agreed (in his own way):

http://twitter.com/#!/ChrisBottaNHL/status/124638112038125569

Devils fans certainly hope the injury isn’t serious. Without Brodeur in the lineup, New Jersey would be forced to go with Johan Hedberg and probably Jeff Frazee. Injuries wouldn’t be anything new for Brodeur though. Since playing in 70+ games for ten straight seasons between 1997 and 2008, he’s missed significant time in two of the past three seasons. Last season, the future Hall of Famer missed 26 games with MCL and elbow problems. In 2008-09, he missed 50 games with a torn tendon in his biceps. This isn’t exactly the trend Devils’ fans want to see as they look to regain their place among the Atlantic Division’s elite.