Lamoriello responds to Brodeur's '.500' comment

Related: Brodeur: Hovering around .500 isn't okay for Devils

New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur on Wednesday expressed a sentiment that "the last few years it’s almost like .500 is okay."

Thursday Devils GM Lou Lamoriello responded.

"I can assure you .500 isn't okay," Lamoriello said, via The Star-Ledger. "I can assure you that it's not acceptable, but words are cheap. The stability of this organization is there right now. Mediocrity is not something that is acceptable to them. And that's probably what I like and respect the most about the owners."

Noting the Cup Finals appearance in 2012, Lamoriello brought this perspective.

"I'll look at a positive. If you can say one out of every four years you'd be in the Stanley Cup Finals, would you take it?" Lamoriello asked. "Approach it from a positive standpoint. We're here to win the Stanley Cup. We're here to win, not to just get into the playoffs.

"You can (take) that answer any way you want about three out of four years (missing) the playoffs. If it means missing the playoffs to do certain things to win the Stanley Cup, then that's what it means. That's mediocrity just getting to the playoffs."

Source: Rich Chere, Star-Ledger