Despite being the NHL’s all-time leader in regular season wins and second in playoff wins, there is a rather hearty contingent that discounts Martin Brodeur’s status as a top-5 goaltender in NHL history, let alone a candidate to the GOAT goalie throne. The argument goes something like, “Brodeur was a product of a brilliant defensive system in New Jersey. There are many goaltenders who could’ve done the same.” This is an interesting take given that Brodeur won at least 40 games for seven different coaches, and played for 22 seasons. No other goalie has won 40+ games more than three times, ever.  That’s quite the heavy lifting by a “system.” Surely, that system would have been copied all around the league, leading to the greatest statistical goalie careers in history? Oh, wait, it was just Brodeur? Hmm.  Nevertheless, Brodeur was a fantastic netminder, and he is a legitimate candidate to the goalie throne. It is quite likely that the three greatest goaltenders in NHL history are–in alphabetical order–Brodeur, Dominik Hasek, and Patrick Roy. With all due respect to the Original Six OG goalies, the competition level at that time wasn’t remotely close to what it is in a robust, 30 team league with a fully globalized pool of international talent. 

Adjusted for competition level, Brodeur, Hasek, and Roy are the Holy Trinity of NHL goaltenders. Ordering them based on merit is not an easy task. Depending on what specific elements we choose to emphasize, the ordering can change drastically. For instance, Dominik Hasek had the greatest goaltender peak in NHL history. If we order the three based on peak, then Hasek gets the nod. We have to be careful, though, because if we’re talking about peak only, then we need to bring Bernie Parent and Tim Thomas into the conversation, which is, of course, an unintended consequence of focusing solely on peak. If we emphasize longevity and playoff success, then Hasek is at the back of the line. When comparing elite resumes, it makes the most sense to look for a healthy balance between longevity, playoff success, and peak. Roy–the only player in NHL history to win three Conn Smythe Trophies, and the goalie with the most 30-win seasons in league history–seems to have the healthiest balance of all three factors. Despite not having the peak seasons that Hasek had, Brodeur played 531 more games than Hasek, and did so at an elite level. Brodeur wins in a massive landslide over Hasek in longevity, while also coming out ahead in playoff success. Hasek, for his part, has a decided advantage over Brodeur in peak performance.  

Even though all three have legitimate GOAT claims, the gap between Roy and Brodeur seems to be smaller than the gap between Brodeur and Hasek. In fact, shoddy Conn Smythe voting might be the only thing keeping Roy ahead of Brodeur. Brodeur was worthy of the Vezina Trophy in each of New Jersey’s three Stanley Cup wins. He set the single-season playoff record for shutouts in 2003 (7) to go with a stellar .934 save percentage and a 1.65 goals against average. He led the 2000 playoffs with a microscopic 1.61 goals against average, and led the playoffs with three shutouts and a .927 save percentage in 1995. In a twist of irony, Brodeur, for all his brilliance, was shut out of the Conn Smythe all three times. Even just one Smythe could’ve added a little more clarity to this pretzeled trio of resumes. Still, Brodeur is unquestionably among the top three goaltenders in the modern era, and he has the resume to prove it.   

Brodeur’s Resume

1). Most top-2 finishes in Vezina Trophy voting (7). 

2). Most top-3 finishes in Vezina Trophy voting (9).

3). Most top-4 finishes in Vezina Trophy voting (11). Nobody else has more than 8.

4). Most top-5 finishes in Vezina Trophy voting (13). Nobody else has more than 10. 

5). Most top-5 finishes in Hart Trophy voting (7) among goaltenders.  

6). Led the NHL in wins 9 times. Nobody else has done it more than 6 times.

7). Most 40-win seasons in NHL history (8). Nobody else has more than 3. 

8). Won 40+ games for seven different coaches. Again, nobody else did it more than 3 times. 

Editor’s note: This is my favorite Brodeur stat.

9). Most wins in NHL history (691).  Nobody else is within 100, and only two are within 200.

10). 2nd most wins in playoff history (113).   

11). Most regular-season shutouts in NHL history (125). Nobody since 1952 is within 40.

12). Most games played in history by 216 (!!!) and still has the 3rd highest winning percentage of any goaltender with at least 600 games played. 

13). Only goalie in history to win four Vezina Trophies* and three Stanley Cups

*Since current Vezina voting rules began in 1981.

	GOAT	Years		GOAT	Years
1	Laurence Doherty	1903-1920	1	Lottie Dod	1893-1920
2	Bill Tilden	1920-1958	2	Molla Mallory	1920-1922
3	Pancho Gonzales	1958-1966	3	Suzanne Lenglen	1922-1930
4	Rod Laver	1966-1998	4	Helen Wills Moody	1930-1970
5	Pete Sampras	1998-2009	5	Margaret Court	1970-1980
6	Roger Federer	2009-2023	6	Chris Evert	1980-1986
7	Novak Djokovic	2023-present	7	Martina Navatilova	1986-1996
			8	Steffi Graf	1996-2016
			9	Serena Williams	2016-present

Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus are the two greatest golfers of all-time by just about the size of the universe. There is nobody else even remotely close to challenging the throne. So while golf features the closest two-player GOAT race in sports, the race for the third spot is wide open. There are no fewer than seven golfers who have a legitimate argument as the third greatest of all-time. It’s not hard to put together a compelling case for each, but there is plenty of evidence to suggest that Phil Mickelson has the best argument of the group. Among golfers born since WWII, only Tiger Woods (82) has more PGA Tour titles than Mickelson (45). In fact, besides Woods, only Tom Watson (39) is within 10 of Mickelson’s mark, and only Vijay Singh (34), Rory McIIroy (27) and Johnny Miller (25) are within 20. Mickelson’s case doesn’t just rely on being the most prolific golfer on the PGA Tour outside of Tiger Woods since WWII. His performance at major championships and The Players Championship (TPC) also supports his claim. Among golfers outside of Woods born since WWII, only Tom Watson (8) has won more majors than Mickelson (6). Watson is among the golfers who have a legitimate claim to the third spot, but Mickelson just might have a more impressive resume despite winning fewer majors. Mickelson won the TPC which Watson did not, and in the history of golf, nobody outside Nicklaus (37) and Woods (22) has more top-two finishes at majors than Mickelson (18). The same is true for top-three, top-five, and top-10 major finishes.

It’s clear that Mickelson’s competition for the 3rd spot really only includes Watson and people who were born prior to WWII when golf was nowhere near as competitive as it has been in the 21st century. Not only did Mickelson face the most competitive field the sport has ever seen, he had the misfortune of his peak coinciding with the juggernaut that was Tiger Woods. Watson, for all his accolades, did not have to contend with Nicklaus’s peak. Mickelson had no such luck as he landed smack dab in the eye of the Tiger storm. Yet, Mickelson still managed to outperform every golfer of the past 50 years outside of Woods. This is a significant advantage in Mickelson’s favor over the others in the running.  

However, it’s not just the degree of difficulty that gives Mickelson the inside track at the third spot, it’s how much more impressive he was than every other golfer outside of Woods from his era. Walter Hagen (1913), Bobby Jones (1916) and Gene Sarazen (1920) all debuted at majors within seven years of each other and have fairly similar career accomplishments. Ben Hogan (1934), Sam Snead (1937), and Byron Nelson (1937) all debuted at majors within three years of each other, and have fairly similar career accomplishments. Arnold Palmer (1952) and Gary Player (1956) debuted at majors within four years of each other and also have fairly similar career accomplishments. Outside of Tiger Woods, there isn’t a golfer who debuted in the last 50 years who is even in the same stratosphere as Mickelson. No golfer other than Woods in that span has more major championships, 2nd place finishes, or top-two finishes. In fact, nobody outside of Woods is even close. Mickelson has a whopping 18 top-two finishes at major events. Outside of Woods, only Greg Norman (10) and Ernie Els (10) are within eight of Mickelson over the past 50 years. Similarly, nobody who debuted outside of Woods in the past 50 years is even close to Mickelson’s 25 top-three finishes. Only Els (15) is within 10 of Mickelson. The same goes for top-five and top-10 finishes. Outside of Woods, only Els (23), Norman (20), and Nick Faldo (19) are within 10 of Mickelson’s 29 top-5 finishes, and only Els (35), McIIroy (31), and Norman (30) are within 10 of Mickelson’s 40 top-10 finishes. 

Ernie Els, Greg Norman, Nick Faldo, Brooks Koepka, and Rory McIIroy are the most accomplished golfers to debut in the last 50 years outside of Woods and Mickelson. However, the resume comparisons between those four and Mickelson end in a blowout in favor of Mickelson. With Woods and Nicklaus in a different dimension, Mickelson’s relative dominance over the most competitive 50-year stretch of golf that the PGA Tour has ever seen makes him a worthy selection for the 3rd spot on the all-time list. The argument for someone in the Hogan, Snead, Nelson triumvirate could’ve been strengthened had eight* major championships not been canceled during WWII. However, without knowing who would’ve won those tournaments, there’s no way to prorate resumes.

* There were actually 14 majors that were canceled, but the best American golfers like Hogan, Snead, and Nelson typically did not compete in the Open Championship (The British Open) during this era. Therefore it is unlikely that their resumes were negatively impacted by the six Open Championships that were not held.