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Brodeur Not Interested in Devils’ GM Job

The NHL put out an article on their official app stating that Martin Brodeur is not interested in taking the Devils’ General Manager position “right now, even if the job were available.”

The report comes from The Hockey News, specifically Matt Larkin, who spoke to Brodeur directly.

He told the publication that he is “happy with his job as executive vice president of hockey operations and senior advisor with the Devils.”

Marty told THN’s Larkin: “I know what it takes to be a GM. I’ve been around Doug Armstrong (with the St. Louis Blues) for a long time and Lou Lamoriello (with the Devils). I’m just not ready for the commitment, regardless of whether it would be offered to me.”

The article notes that Brodeur, the Devils’ legendary goaltender who won three Stanley Cups as a player and lead the Devils to five Stanley Cup Finals, “moved from a Devils business position to hockey operations after Ray Shero was fired as GM on Jan. 12 and replaced by Tom Fitzgerald.”

Fitzgerald is still in the position of GM, albeit as an interim. It was mentioned in the article that he has been interviewing coaches, among them former Islanders, Hurricanes, Flyers and Predators coach Peter Laviolette (who has been linked to the Devils in various outlets) and Alain Nasreddine, the interim who took over from John Hynes on December 3. The NHL news piece said that Brodeur and Fitzgerald have been working closely in preparation for the 2020 NHL Draft Lottery, where the Devils have a 7.5 percent chance to gain the first overall pick.

When Marty retired after the 2014-15 season (he played the final seven games of his career as a Blue), he stayed in St. Louis “as a special adviser to Armstrong.” He currently lives in St. Louis and has a ten-year-old son there, which, the article notes is why “he said he’s not ready to take on the rigors of being an NHL general manager.”

Brodeur told THN’s Larkin: “the reason why I went back to New Jersey is because I was able to control my time, because I’m not moving from St. Louis yet, and I have a 10-year-old at home who does all the activities in the world. I’m not saying that one day I won’t say, ‘You know what? This is the time for me to do it, maybe.’ But right now, I value my time off too much to get myself involved.”

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Devils and Prudential Center to Recognize Juneteenth

According to a post on Facebook put out by the Devils at about 5 PM today, the organization will be closing the offices of both the club and the Prudential Center tomorrow, Friday, June 19, in recognition of Juneteenth.

Juneteenth is an unofficial American holiday (except in Texas where it is an official state holiday), celebrating the official emancipation of the last slaves in the Confederacy following the American Civil War.

On June 19, 1865, Union Army General Gordon Granger read federal orders in Galveston, Texas proclaiming slaves in Texas to be free. Although the Emancipation Proclamation had actually freed all slaves almost three years before, due to Texas’ remote location at the time, enforcement of the Proclamation was difficult for Union forces.

Celebrations of the holiday go back to 1866 and are usually celebrated in most major cities nationwide today.

The Devils and Prudential Center are recognizing it as a permanent company holiday in order for players and staff “to reflect, learn and celebrate Juneteenth as we collectively work toward racial equality.”

There is currently a movement among citizens to get the holiday recognized as a federal holiday in the United States at large.