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Instead of working to play 70-plus games again this season, columnist Mike Celizic would like to see goalie Martin Brodeur sit more games out on the  bench so he can be fresh for the playoffs and extend his career.

Brodeur will pass Roy’s win total in the season’s first two months. He’ll probably pass Sawchuck's shutout mark sometime next season. He’ll also pass Roy’s record for games played — 1,029 — with his 62nd start this year.

In a perfect world, that 62nd start will come with just a couple of games left in the season instead of a couple of weeks. It should really be in the season’s last game, which would mean that Weekes would get 20 starts during the season — the same number Roy’s back-ups averaged during most of his career.

This isn’t just about this year. Brodeur has four years remaining on what will almost certainly be his final contract. He’ll be 40 when the contract’s final year arrives in 2011-12. He’s got $5.2 million a year coming under that deal, and if the Devils want to get their value out of an aging superstar, they have to manage his time better.

Weekes is a decent backup who has been the No. 1 goalie for the Lightning and the Hurricanes. He’s no Brodeur, but he can play one of every four or five games. And if he can’t, the solution is to get another backup, not to wear out Brodeur.

The Devils have too much invested in Brodeur to continue to abuse him. He’s at the stage of his career where he’ll play better when he gets days off. And the fresher he is, the better the chances he’ll be able to continue to play at a high level and set standards for wins, games and shutouts that could stand as monuments to his skill and that of the Devils organizations for decades.

It can be argued that the team shouldn’t be worried about individual records. It is a team game. I agree with that, and that’s another reason the team has to find a way to keep him fresh. The object is not just to make the playoffs, but to win the Stanley Cup, something Brodeur has done three times. And the only way the Devils will get back to that frozen Promised Land is to realize they have a backup goalie hidden in plain sight.

So play him, already.

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