“I think it’s great from the standpoint of guys that were so important to the New Jersey Devils franchise and key cogs to us winning, whether it was coaches, players, builders, combination,” Daneyko said. “The first one in, Dr. McMullen, whom I loved and have a great affinity for. He was like a second father to me. It’s great that we’re going to add to that. It means a lot for the franchise and organization. There were guys that were so instrumental to this team and its history.”
“There are so many guys in the franchise that have made huge impacts on the team, on the community, on the fanbase. It’s good to recognize some of these guys,” Brodeur said. “It’s one thing to get your jersey retired but there are other things people do, not to that extent, but that is important to acknowledge players and coaches and builders.”
As far as those with their numbers retired, they will play a substantial role in whom will be added to the Ring of Honor in the future.
That’s because future additions to the Ring of Honor will be determined by a special “Ring of Honor Committee.” That committee will be comprised of the five players with their numbers retired, Daneyko, Stevens, Elias, Niedermayer, Brodeur, the two Ring of Honor members, Peter McMullen on behalf of the McMullen family and Brylin, certain team executives and a rotating media member.
“It's a big honor to be a part of it, to have your say,” Brodeur said. “I’ve been with the organization for a long, long time. I know what it took for us to get to where we are now. The fact that they trust me to give my two cents is really, really special.”
It made sense to include the ‘Banner players’ in the committee. Each has a long history with the organization having spent at least 10-plus years as part of the organization in a playing capacity. A few of them have been with the team for over two decades with considering their post-playing capacities in management or media.
“I’ve been around a long time. It’s an honor,” said Daneyko, who has provided television color commentary on the team since 2014. “We want to have a committee that can all decide on a pecking order of who goes it. It’s not always easy. We’ll all have a difference of opinion. That’s what it’s all about as far as who goes in and when. To be part of it is an honor and a privilege because it means a lot, and it certainly means a lot to me.”
Brylin’s addition to the Ring of Honor was a no-brainer. His resume speaks for itself, playing 13 NHL seasons, all with the Devils, and helping the club win three Stanley Cup rings. He’s also been an assistant coach with the club, first in the minor leagues for a decade (2012-22) and the past two in the NHL. Brylin has spent nearly three decades with the organization.
“It couldn’t be a better guy to go in the Ring of Honor and what he meant to the organization and what he still means to the organization, coaching the team,” Daneyko said. “He just played the game the right way. He was just an intelligent, smart player. A great honor for him. I know he’s excited. I saw him the other night. ‘Sarge’ doesn’t show a lot of emotion. That was the most I’ve seen from him. He’s really happy and really honored. It’s well deserved obviously. I couldn’t think of a better guy to go in next.”
“He really represented what we were all about in those years,” Brodeur said. “For him to get that recognition, I’m sure he’s excited about it. We are excited about it as a group to put his name up there forever.”
With Brylin being the next guy, the question now is who will be the next next guy?
“After ‘Sarge,’ there is no clearcut next guy,” Brodeur said. “A lot of people could make it. Having lots of opinions is important to select who will be next going forward. Tons of people deserve to be recognized by the franchise.
“We’ll take our time and do it the right way.”
Some of those names include those still involved in the game such as Lou Lamoriello, former coaches Jacques Lemaire, Larry Robinson and Pat Burns, and long list of former players with names like John MacLean, Kirk Muller, Bruce Driver and on and on.
“You can go to coaches and look no further than Jacques Lemaire and Larry Robinson who were so important to this franchise,” Daneyko said. “Claude Lemieux, he was so important in the playoffs. You look at guys in the old days when it started, the Kirk Mullers, John MacLean, how big was he scoring in overtime and being part of the first Stanley Cup championship team. Bruce Driver comes to mind. I could go on and on, the Pandolfos, the Maddens.”
There is no shortage of worthy candidates. And those will be the names that the committee will have to debate before the next inductee is announced.
“We’ll have discussions, great conversations, lots of different names,” Brodeur said. “There will be some surprise names from people on the committee. It’ll be interesting conversations to go through.”
“That’s why we have a committee to decide,” Daneyko said. “You can’t put them all in at once. It takes some time. That’s what we’ll banter around when we have our discussions along the way and in the future of guys going into the Ring of Honor.”
