We are all Witnesses

It is highly likely Brodeur is going to pass Terry Sawchuk for the all-time shut-out lead sometime this year when he posts the 104th of his career.

In the argument for greatest goaltender of all time, the natural contemporary to compare him to is Patrick Roy. Roy, it should be noted, is some 40 shutouts in arrears of Brodeur.

Other contemporaries like Belfour and Hasek are over 20 shutouts behind - despite the fact both played until they are close to 40 years old.

Brodeur is only 37.

There is one other argument to be made for Brodeur aside from his gaudy stats, that has so far been overlooked. Like Gretzky and Orr before him, Brodeur changed the game.

Sure, Hextall was the first goaltender to stand out as a play-maker and puckmover in his own zone, but Brodeur is without a doubt the one who has perfected it - and it is his puckhandling influence on the game that leads directly to the league imposing the rules regarding how far a goalie can wander from his net to play the puck.

Roy and Brodeur share a similar number of Cup wins, etc., but for a variety of reasons, including having another three years or so to pad his resume, eventually Brodeur will own every significant stat for goaltenders (wins, shutouts, etc. ) there is.

But unlike Roy, he will also have changed the game itself.

So we are all witnesses to greatness. Right now. The best goaltender of all-time is playing the game.