On November 28, former Pittsburgh Penguins netminder Marc-Andre Fleury turned 40, cementing his status as the NHL’s oldest netminder. A day later he was between the pipes and led the Minnesota Wild to another victory.
According to league Public Relations, with his 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night, Fleury joins Hockey Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur as the only goaltenders to win NHL games as a teenager and 40-year-old.
Fleury’s first win came as a member of the Penguins, who drafted him first overall on October 18, 2003 against the Detroit Red Wings. Twenty years later, on January 15, 2024, he moved into second place on the NHL’s all-time wins list with his 552nd win.
It’s only fitting that Fleury finds himself in a different category alone with Brodeur after Friday’s win, as the two have the first (691) and second most (566) wins in professional hockey history.
Additionally, if Fleury could play fourteen more games before retiring, he would overtake Roberto Luongo (1,044) and be behind Brodeur (1,266) for most games played.
Fleury seems to make history every night he puts on his sanitary pads. Fans around the league should embrace the next five months because the next time we see The Flower, it will be at a jersey retirement ceremony or his induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
