Emotional Niedermayer welcomed back in New Jersey

Saying it felt right to be wearing a Devils jersey again, a humble #27 Scott Niedermayer jersey saw his No. 27 jersey retired on Friday night by the New Jersey franchise that he helped win three of his four Stanley Cups.

“It was an honor to be a New Jersey Devil,” Niedermayer said near the end of the 35-minute ceremony held more than an hour before the Devils played the Dallas Stars. “These memories, I will cherish the rest of my life.”

The swift-skating Niedermayer is only the third Devil to have his jersey retired by the franchise, joining fellow defensemen Scott Stevens (No. 4) and Ken Daneyko (No. 3), the trio who along with goaltender Martin Brodeur formed the backbone of those NHL championship teams in 1995, 2000 and 2003.

Robinson combined to give Niedermayer his Devils jersey during the ceremony. The only other member of all three teams who was NHL jerseys wholesale not present was forward Sergei Brylin, who is playing in Russia.

“To put this jersey on again feels right,” Niedermayer said, drawing a roar from the packed crowd at the Prudential Center.

Niedermayer was accompanied at the ceremony by his parents, his wife, Lisa, and their four children and his brother Rob, who joined Scott in winning a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007, and played with the Devils in 2009-10.

During a short speech that was interrupted by cheers of `Scotty,’ `Nieder-mayer’ and `Nieder,’ the Edmonton, Alberta native thanked the Devils owners, general manager Lou Lamoriello, who drafted him third overall in 1991, his teammates, the fans and even the Stars, who showed a lot of class sitting on the bench for the ceremony.

“We had so much depth on those teams, I think sometimes it allows a player of Scott’s caliber to get lost a little bit,” said Stevens, the captain on all three Stanley Cup teams who was the first player in team history to have his jersey retired. “But he had it all, and he was able to develop at a time when the culture was changing under (former coach) Jacques (Lemaire) and Larry, and we just continued to build confidence. It’s a good feeling.

“There were some bumps along the way, like there are with New Reebok Boston Bruins #77 Ray Bourque Yellow jersey all teams, but we ended up becoming a championship team. Scott, obviously, had a lot to do with that.”

The ceremony came two decades after Niedermayer was drafted to play in a place that he was clueless about .