Daddy Dearest

2004-05 Upper Deck card #196 – Denis Brodeur

2004-05 Upper Deck card #196 - Denis BrodeurDuring the 2004-05 lockout, Upper Deck was at a loss for “Young Guns”. Since the NHL “wasn’t happening” that year, there was no fresh infusion of talent to depict on their hockey cards. At a loss for players to include in their “Young Guns” subset, Upper Deck made an interesting move, and created cards of people who were long overdue for one. Some of the cards – such as those of Lord Stanley, Hobey Baker and Cammi Granato -made sense. One interesting, if not questionable, inclusion in that year’s “Young Guns” set though was a card of Denis Brodeur – the father of New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur.

Yes, that’s right: Martin Brodeur’s daddy got his own hockey card becausehe’s Martin Broduer’s daddy. Upper Deck does not deny this – as it is the first thing mentioned on the card back – but also points out some of Denis’ own professional merits:

The father of three time Stanley Cup winner Martin Brodeur, Denis was also a goaltender during his playing days. In the 1956 Winter Games in Italy, Brodeur helped Canada earn a third-place finish. In addition, Brodeur has also been recognized as one of hockey’s finest photographers. He was the longtime photographer for both the Montreal Canadiens and Montreal Expos.

2004-05 Upper Deck card #196 - Denis BrodeurOK, so the elder Brodeur won a bronze medal and was a sports photographer. That’s great, but why stop with just him? Why didn’t Upper Deck also make a card of Walter Gretzky, who fathered the greatest hockey player of all time? Or a card of Colleen Howe, who was the first female player agent when she represented her husband Gordie and sons Marty and Mark. Surely, Walter and Colleen deserved a card as much as the Bro-dog’s dad.

Another thing that makes this card silly is that bulbous glove covering Denis’ stick hand. Apparently, using a blocker was a no-no in the Olympics, thus forcing him to use an oversized oven mitt for protection.

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Author: Sal Barry

Sal Barry is the editor and webmaster of Puck Junk. He is a freelance hockey writer, college professor and terrible hockey player. Follow him on Twitter @puckjunk

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