December 18, 2009: Martin Brodeur Breaks the NHL Record for Games By a Goaltender

December 18, 2009: It was my 40th Birthday, and I celebrated by attending the New Jersey Devils' game against the Ottawa Senators, at the Prudential Center in downtown Newark, New Jersey.

The Devils won, 4-2. They got goals by Jamie Langenbrunner in the 1st period, Brian Rolston and Jay Pandolfo in the 2nd, and Bryce Salvador in the 3rd. The Ottawa goals came from Alexandre Picard and Jarkko Ruutu, both in the 2nd.

Only 13,728 fans attended. The fans who could have attended, but chose not to, may not have realized they had the chance to witness a historic occasion. Honestly, I didn't know it was one, beyond being a milestone birthday for me. But the announcement was made that Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur was playing in the 1,030th game of his career, a new record for goaltenders.

He surpassed the record of 1,029, set between 1984 and 2003 by Patrick Roy. Roy also held the record for most career wins by a goalie, with 551. Brodeur broke that record, and raised it to 691.

Brodeur ended his career by playing in 1,266 regular-season games, all with the Devils, except for the last 7, with the St. Louis Blues. He played in an additional 205 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, helping the Devils win the Cup in 1995, 2000 and 2003, losing in the Finals in 2001 and 2012.

*

December 18, 2009 was a Friday. There were 5 other NHL games that day:

* The Florida Panthers, 6-3 at the BankAtlantic Center (now the Amerant Bank Arena) in the Miami suburb of Sunrise, Florida.

* The Buffalo Sabres beat their arch-rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-2 at the HSBC Arena (now the KeyBank Center) in Buffalo.

* In an "Original Six" matchup, the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Boston Bruins, 5-4 in a shootout at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the St. Louis Blues, 6-3 at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis.

* And the Vancouver Canucks beat the Washington Capitals, 3-2 at General Motors Place (now the Rogers Arena) in Vancouver.

Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were 11 games in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 95-91 at Madison Square Garden.

* The New Jersey Nets lost to the Toronto Raptors, 118-95 at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

* The Philadelphia 76ers beat their arch-rivals, the Boston Celtics, 98-97 at the TD Garden in Boston.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Utah Jazz, 96-83 at the Philips Arena (now the State Farm Arena) in Atlanta.

* The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Indiana Pacers, 107-94 at the FedEx Forum in Memphis.

* The New Orleans Hornets beat the Denver Nuggets, 98-92 at the New Orleans Arena (now the Smoothie King Center) in New Orleans.

* The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Detroit Pistons, 109-98 at the Oklahoma City Arena (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City.

* The Houston Rockets beat their arch-rivals, the Dallas Mavericks, 116-108 in overtime at the American Airlines Arena in Dallas.

* The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 85-82 at the Quicken Loans Arena (now the Rocket Arena) in Cleveland.

* The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Sacramento Kings, 112-96 at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

* And the Washington Wizards beat the Golden State Warriors, 118-109 at the Oracle Arena (as the Oakland Coliseum Arena was then known). Gilbert Arenas led all scorers on the night with 45 points.

October 25, 2007: The Prudential Center Opens

October 25, 2007: The Prudential Center opens, at 165 Mulberry Street in Newark, with a concert by Jon Bon Jovi.

Eventually, the address would be changed to 25 Lafayette Street. It is bounded by Edison Place on the north, Mulberry Street on the east, Lafayette Street on the south, and Broad Street on the west, although there is a row of buildings between Broad Street and the arena.

It replaces the Meadowlands Arena, in East Rutherford, known from 1981 to 1996 as the Brendan Byrne Arena; then until 2007 as the Continental Airlines Arena; and thereafter as the Izod Center. That arena had opened on July 2, 1981, with a concert by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band. So it was somewhat appropriate that the replacement was opened with a concert by a later New Jersey rock and roll legend.

It has been home to the NHL's New Jersey Devils and Seton Hall University's basketball team since it opened. It was also a temporary home to the NBA's New Jersey Nets from 2010 to 2012, and the WNBA's New York Liberty in 2011 and 2012.

Its location, in the downtown of New Jersey's largest city, 3 blocks from Newark's version of Pennsylvania Station, makes it considerably more convenient an arena than the Meadowlands, which, until New Jersey Transit built the Meadowlands Rail Spur in 2009, was only accessible by 1 of 2 ways: Driving, or a bus that had to be picked up at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan. Since 2007, a person wanting to see a Devils game can take the train, on NJT's Northeast Corridor or North Jersey Coast Lines; or a bus, the Number 67.

The Devils won 3 Stanley Cups, reached 1 other Stanley Cup Finals, and won 7 Division titles at the Meadowlands. Since moving into "The Rock," nicknamed for Prudential Insurance's use of the Rock of Gibraltar as a symbol, they have won 2 Division titles, and reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 2012 -- but have missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 9 of the last 10 years. And the building has replaced the Meadowlands Arena as New Jersey's leading rock concert venue.

*

October 25, 2007 was a Thursday. The Devils opened the season on the road, because it wasn't clear that the arena would be ready when the 2007-08 NHL season opened -- and, as it turned out, it wasn't. They played the 1st game there 2 days later, losing 4-1 to the Ottawa Senators. Chris Neil scored the 1st goal, while Brian Gionta scored the 1st Devils goal. On Halloween, 4 days later, they got their 1st win in the new building, 6-1 over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

These 9 NHL games were played on October 25:

* The Devils lost to their arch-rivals, the New York Rangers, 2-0 at Madison Square Garden. Nigel Dawes scored both goals.

* The Boston Bruins beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 3-1 at the building now named the TD Garden in Boston.

* The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 5-2 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. (It's now named the Benchmark International Arena.)

* The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 5-2 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh. (It was then named the Mellon Arena, before reverting to its original name.)

* The Columbus Blue Jackets beat the St. Louis Blues, 3-0 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus.

* The Nashville Predators beat the Atlanta Thrashers, 3-0 at the Sommet Center in Nashville. (It's now named the Bridgestone Arena.)

* The Edmonton Oilers beat the Minnesota Wild, 5-4 in a shootout, at the Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton.

* The Phoenix Coyotes beat the Anaheim Ducks, 1-0 at the Honda Center in the Los Angeles suburb of Anaheim, California.

* And the Los Angeles Kings beat the Dallas Stars, 2-1 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. (It's now named the Crypton.com Arena.)

The 2007-08 NBA season opened 5 days after the Prudential Center did. There was one other sporting event of note on October 25: Game 2 of the World Series. The Boston Red Sox beat the Colorado Rockies, 2-1 at Fenway Park in Boston. The Rockies got to Curt Schilling for a run in the 1st inning, but the Sox tied the game in the 4th, and that ended the only lead Colorado had in the entire Series, which Boston swept.

May 25, 2012: The Adam Henrique Game

May 25, 2012: Game 6 of the NHL Eastern Conference Finals is played at the Prudential Center in Newark. The New Jersey Devils host their arch-rivals, the New York Rangers.

It was 18 years to the day after a Game 6 at the Devils' previous home, the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands, where New York Ranger captain Mark Messier guaranteed would be won, and was. Needless to say, given the Devils' history with the Rangers did not want to go back to Madison Square Garden for a Game 7.

The game was tight, with the Devils getting 1st period goals from Ryan Carter and Ilya Kovalchuk. But they blew the lead, with the Rangers getting 2nd period goals from Ruslan Fedotenko and Ryan Callahan.

It went to overtime. A minute and 3 seconds into the overtime period, Adam Henrique put the puck past "King" Henrik Lundqvist, and Mike Emrick yelled on NBC, "Pumped at by Kovalchuk, they score! Henrique! It's over!"

Henrique was born on February 6, 1990, meaning he shares a birthday with Babe Ruth. He was born in Brantford, Ontario, hometown of Wayne Gretzky, but Gretzky never scored a goal this important. It was, if not the biggest goal in New Jersey Devils history, certainly the most satisfying, helping to ease the pain of the Game 6 and Game 7 losses to the Rangers in 1994, including the Game 7 double-overtime loss on the goal by Stéphane Matteau.

The Devils went on to play the Los Angeles Kings in the Stanley Cup Finals, losing in 6 games.

*

May 25, 2012 was a Sunday. The Kings had already wrapped up the Western Conference Championship. The NBA Playoffs were between the Conference Semifinals and the Conference Finals. And football was in the off-season. These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Oakland Athletics, 6-3 at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the O.co Coliseum). Mark Teixeira, Robinson Canó and Nick Swisher hit home runs in support of Iván Nova. Derek Jeter went 0-for-5, and Alex Rodriguez went 2-for-5.

* The New York Mets beat the San Diego Padres, 6-1 at Citi Field.

* The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox, 7-4 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Kansas City Royals, 8-2 at Camden Yards in Baltimore.

* The Washington Nationals beat the Atlanta Braves, 7-4 at Turner Field (now Center Parc Stadium) in Atlanta.

* The Miami Marlins beat the San Francisco Giants, 7-6 at Marlins Park (now LoanDepot Park) in Miami.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs, 1-0 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. It took 5 pitchers, starting with 5 1/3rd innings from A.J. Burnett, to pitch a 10-hit shutout.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Cincinnati Reds, 6-3 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Cleveland Indians, 9-3 at U.S. Cellular Field (now Rate Field) in Chicago.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins, 10-6 at Target Field in Minneapolis.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-3 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Hunter Pence hit a 2-run home run in the top of the 10th inning.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 14-3 at Rangers Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 7-1 at Chase Field in Phoenix.

* The Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the Los Angeles Angels beat the Seattle Mariners, 6-4 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle.

April 23, 2012: The Last Nets Game In New Jersey

April 23, 2012: A very final final from the Prudential Center in Newark. The New Jersey Nets lose their last-ever home game to the Philadelphia 76ers, 105-87.

A crowd of 18,711 saw MarShon Brooks lead the Nets with just 18 points. The Sixers had no player score more than 15, but 5 players score at least 13, and 8 players scored at least 8.

New Jersey Nets, born October 21, 1977 (with a 111-103 loss to the New Orleans Jazz at the Rutgers Athletic Center), died April 23, 2012. Age, 34. Time of death, 9:55 PM. Cause of death: Murder, stabbed in the back by Bruce Ratner. Wound mortal, but death took 8 years.

They played at the Rutgers Athletic Center (now the Jersey Mike's Arena) from 1977 to 1981, then at the Meadowlands Arena until 2010. That building was named the Brendan Byrne Arena from 1981 to 1996; the Continental Airlines Arena until 2007; and the Izod Center until 2012. After the Nets left, it reverted to the name "Meadowlands Arena," and has been converted into TV studios.

They groundshared with the NHL's New Jersey Devils at that arena from 1982 to 2007, and again with the Devils at the Prudential Center in the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons, before the Barclays Center finally opened in Brooklyn, and the move could be made.

The Nets played one more game under the New Jersey name, on April 26, losing to the Toronto Raptors, 98-67 at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.

New Jersey Nets: NBA Eastern Conference Champions 2002 and 2003. But they could have been so much more. Requiescat in pace.

*

April 23, 2012 was a Monday. There were 5 other games played in the NBA that day:

* The Washington Wizards beat the Charlotte Hornets, 101-73 at the MCI Center in Washington. (It is now named the Capital One Arena.)

* The Indiana Pacers beat the Detroit Pistons, 103-97 at a full house in the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis.

* The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 109-101 at the FedEx Arena in Memphis.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 92-86 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

* And the San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 124-89 to Sam Houston Coliseum.

Two Stanley Cup Playoff games were played. The New York Rangers beat the Ottawa Senators, 3-2; and the Boston Bruins beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 3-2 at the TD Garden in Boston.

And while football was out of season, there was baseball to be played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Texas Rangers, 7-4 at Rangers Ballpark in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. (It's now named Choctaw Stadium.) Alex Rodriguez hit a home run, Derek Jeter got 4 hits, and CC Sabathia was the winning pitcher.

* The New York Mets got swept in a doubleheader by the San Francisco Giants at Citi Field. The Giants won the opener, 6-1; and the nightcap, 7-2.

* The Chicago Cubs beat their arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Houston Astros, 6-5 at Miller Park in Milwaukee. (It's now named American Family Field.)

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins, 6-5 at Target Field in Minneapolis.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals, 4-1 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 9-5 at Chase Field in Phoenix.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves, 7-2 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the Chicago White Sox beat the Oakland Athletics, 4-0 at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the O.co Coliseum). Jake Peavy pitched a 3-hit shutout.