Safe Bet of the Day #1

For the first "Safe Bet of the Day," comes the most obvious choice as the number one selection in your hockey pool... Martin Brodeur.

You can't get much safer then Marty... in the last 3 seasons of hockey pools, Brodeur hasn't ranked lower than 3rd in point standings, finishing 1st in the previous 2 years.

Quite honestly, he's the best goaltender in the NHL and should you dare look otherwise on the 1st overall pick, you're pretty much guaranteed 35+ wins in the season. Of course, you have to factor in the luck of health, but for argument purposes, he's a workhorse that doesn't break.

I'm not trying to jinx him or anything... believe me. I'd take him if I had the chance.

Although the rules have changed for this season, Martin Brodeur had made some good points lately... teams don't have coaches for offense anymore like they do for defensive drills, goalie coaches and emphasis on the penalty kill. He makes a good point when he says, (paraphrasing) "Hey, why doesn't anyone give credit to the skills some of these goalies have?"

Brodeur has never really been criticized for the size of his pads, although he is moving to a slightly smaller set this season, unlike J-S Giguere in Anaheim or Garth Snow (Islanders) in his lacrosse goalie days. He is a goalie's goalie and has been fortunate from time to time with great teams in front of him and it doesn't change this year.

Larry Robinson will focus on making sure the puck stays out of the Devils net this year and the last line of defense looks to stand up to the test.