Marc-Andre Fleury Reaches 1,000 Games As a Great Ambassador for Hockey
Only three other NHL goalies did what Marc-Andre Fleury experienced on Sunday with his 1,000th game played. Adam Proteau writes more on Fleury’s remarkable achievement and career.
For the most part, hockey people are good-natured. But every so often, you encounter people who are especially kind and graceful – the best ambassadors for the game you can find.
It’s safe to say one of the best hockey players on the planet – veteran Minnesota Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury – is also one of the most endearing. And Fleury is celebrating a milestone few of his colleagues even get close to.
The 39-year-old Fleury started in Sunday’s game against Winnipeg, and that appearance makes him the fourth goalie and 388th player in NHL history to reach the 1,000th game mark.
Fleury joins Devils icon Martin Brodeur, who finished with 1,266 games, Vancouver and Florida’s Roberto Luongo (1,044 games) and Montreal and Colorado’s Patrick Roy (1,029 games) as members of the 1,000-game club.
If it is Fleury’s last season, he likely won’t pass any of those three netminders in game appearances, but it’s no small feat to get to the 1,000-game plateau. Fleury is in his 20th NHL season – a milestone few players, goaltender or otherwise, ever reaches – and more importantly, he’s a credit to his team and his sport.
Indeed, you’d be hard-pressed to ever find Fleury with a frown on, acting surly to media or fans. Instead, he’s always smiling, always looking to find a way to joke around with teammates or everyday folks. And he’s unafraid to take a stand, as evidenced by his recent support of First Nations peoples when he donned a custom-made goalie mask to honor his First Nations wife. The NHL had threatened to punish teams and players who did not follow its rule to effectively ban masks with socio-political messages on them for one game. But Fleury responded to that by stating he’d pay the penalty for it, and he wore it in warm-up anyway. That’s the sign of a true leader. That’s the proof you need of the caliber of Fleury’s character.
In 1,000 career games, Fleury has posted a 550-321-2-91 record, a .912 save percentage, a 2.59 goals-against average, and 73 shutouts. The Wild are his fourth NHL team, and while most people associate him with his time with the Pittsburgh Penguins, he’s also made friends and fans playing for the Vegas Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks and the Wild.
In that time, he’s built up a bunch of achievements, including ranking first in league history for goaltenders with shootout wins (65), third in career wins (550) and fourth all-time in career saves (26,016) and minutes played (57,900:03). He’s a four-time NHL all-star, and in 2020-21, he won the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender, putting up a 26-10-0 record with six shutouts, a .928 SP and 1.98 GAA.
Oh, and let’s not forget the three Stanley Cups he’s won. Fleury has a 92-74 record in 169 playoff appearances, posting a 2.56 GAA, .911 SP and 16 shutouts. With the struggles the Wild have had this season, Fleury may not get a chance to improve on those playoff career totals, but he doesn’t need any more help to make him a surefire Hockey Hall of Famer.
Fleury’s ability to remain an NHL-caliber goalie as he nears age 40 is remarkable enough on its own. But it’s the way he’s handled the pressure of netminding that sets him apart from his peers. He’s forever an optimist, forever a smiler, forever a person that sees the best in the people around him. You don’t see that everyday from elite NHLers. Some players prefer to do their talking with their on-ice performance, and keep their off-ice lives to themselves. Fleury, on the other hand, has never had an inflated ego, and he’s never lashed out at reports about his quality of play, or anything else, really. He’s a Hall of Fame human being, and he’s made his community much richer just by being himself.
Given how modern-day goalies are now in a tandem setup, it will be quite difficult for any of them to reach the 1,000-game plateau. That means Fleury may be the last 1,000-game goalie we see. But celebrating that achievement should take a back seat to celebrating the Grade-A gentleman Fleury is. When he stops playing, he’ll brighten the days of whatever place he winds up being in, hockey-related or otherwise.
Fleury is a legend as a player, but he’s a legend as a person, and that deserves a round of applause as a thank you for all he’s done for hockey. He’s always been himself, and he’s shown the world how wonderful he is. Whatever his next step will be after his playing days are done, his legion of friends and family will be cheering him on.