Fleury of Wild reflects on passing Roy for 2nd on NHL wins list

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Marc-Andre Fleury moved into sole possession of second place on the NHL's all-time wins list when he made 21 saves for his first shutout of the season in a 5-0 win for the Minnesota Wild against the New York Islanders on Monday.

The win, Fleury's 552nd, comes nine days after he tied his childhood idol, Patrick Roy, for second in NHL history. The Wild went 0-3-1 last week, with Fleury going 0-1-1 in his two starts.

“Finally, right? It’s been a little rough lately,” Fleury said. “I wish we could have done this a little while ago, right? But I think everybody knows, everyone in this room, that we try to work our best and try to win games, climb our way back, right, and tonight that was a great game against a good team and we got that one.”

Fleury now trails only Martin Brodeur (691) on the NHL's all-time wins list.

“I’ll need 15 more years,” Fleury joked of catching Brodeur. “I think it’s good. It’s good to have goals. I think for me the last couple years, right, I’ve been playing for a while but it’s something I always wanted to win the next game, but personally trying to get some games played, some wins, right? I think it’s fun to catch up to some of these guys and I always loved goalies growing up, so I have so much respect for guys that played before me and it’s an honor not just for Patrick but for the other guys I was able to catch up with.”

Fleury was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NHL Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins, with whom he played his first 13 seasons and won three Stanley Cups: 2009, 2016 and 2017. The 39-year-old is 552-324-92 with two ties, a 2.59 goals-against average, .912 save percentage and 74 shutouts in 1,007 games (978 starts) with the Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks and Wild.

Fleury is on the final season of a two-year, $7 million contract he signed with Minnesota on July 8, 2002.

“I came in, my dream was to play in the NHL,” Fleury said. “I was so happy to play that first game. From then on, it was just one game at a time, one win at a time, trying to win the next one. I’ve been very fortunate to play with really great teams, great teammates, people that helped me stay healthy, right, throughout the journey. It feels crazy to be here now.”

Fleury, who played in his 1,000th game on Dec. 31, is the fourth goalie to reach the mark, along with Brodeur, Roy (1,029) and Roberto Luongo (1,044). Each is from Quebec, and Fleury seems certain to follow his three fellow Quebecois into the Hockey Hall of Fame; Roy was inducted in 2006, Brodeur in 2018 and Luongo in 2022.

What makes Fleury more special than the accolades -- past, present and future -- is the type of teammate he is.

“He’s a likable guy,” Wild forward Mats Zuccarello said. “He’s a better guy than a goalie, and that says a lot, when you have the second-best goalie in the world — so far. We’ll see. He gets younger and younger, so you never know.”

Added Marcus Foligno: “It’s so cool to be a part of that night. We’re happy to be a part of it. He’s had a lot of wins with obviously Pittsburgh, Vegas, Chicago and us, and just to be part of a guy’s Hall of Fame bound and such an amazing career and amazing person, happy to be the team that does it for him. He played great tonight. To get a shutout, too, it’s a really special.”