Goofy goals happen to the best of them.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

Byline: Nicholas J. Cotsonika

ANAHEIM, Calif. _ To a typical goaltender, it would have been a nightmare. But Martin Brodeur isn't a typical goaltender. To him, it was humorous.

"I was laughing at myself," Brodeur said. "I was like, `This is unbelievable. You're in the Stanley Cup finals. You know so many millions of people are watching you, and your stick slips out of your hands and you get scored on.' "

It happened 14:47 into the second period Saturday night. Mighty Ducks of Anaheim defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh sent the puck into the New Jersey Devils' zone. Brodeur turned to his left to play the puck.

And dropped his stick.

"It happened once this year," Brodeur said. "My stick went all the way in the corner, and I didn't have any stick to play the rest of that shift. But this one just kind of . . . it was an unfortunate bounce."

The puck hit the stick, and as Brodeur twisted and crumpled to the ice, it went between his legs and slid into the net.