Brownie Points: Patrick Roy is the Michael Jordan of retiring jerseys

Proving that time (and management changes) heals all wounds, the Montreal Canadiens will retire Patrick Roy’s No. 33 jersey in November.

Read Jerry Brown's blog, 'Brownie Bytes'

The reconciliation comes after one of the ugliest divorces in sports. Embarrassingly left on the ice to endure much of a 12-1 home loss in 1995, Roy charged off the ice and told a team official he has played his last game for the team. Indeed he had, going to Colorado in a blockbuster trade and leading the Avs to a pair of Stanley Cups.

This wasn’t Terrell Owens looking to escape San Francisco or Philadelphia, or even Manny Ramirez pushing his way out of Boston. This was the greatest goaltender ever, skating off the ice in shame and simultaneously washing his hands of the most storied franchise in his sport.

Roy’s departure instantly changed hockey in Montreal. The Canadiens have won 24 championships, or basically one out of every four, since the Stanley Cup was first awarded. But they haven’t been past the second round of the playoffs since “St. Patrick” departed — an unprecedented drought in team annals.

There was no fair value for Roy, but Jocelyn Thibault (who endured most of the fans’ wrath as the replacement for Roy), Martin Rucinsky and Andrei Kovalenko didn’t come close.

Roy’s jersey already hangs in Colorado, where he helped turn the Avalanche into, well, the Canadiens for seven-plus seasons (eight division titles, two Cups), but now it will hang in Montreal — which has more room in the rafters after going thirsty for 15 years.

WEEK IN REVIEW

ICING

Stopping a slump

To Brandon Webb for righting the ship Friday, tossing eight scoreless innings and winning his 20th game against the Reds. His mini-slump came at the worst time for Arizona, but for fans and media to question whether it should affect plans for a contract extension is silly. He might have cost himself a second Cy Young, but that’s it.

NUTS

How about some love for the Suns

To the “experts” who are picking the Suns to miss the playoffs. They have some question marks without a doubt. They are aging in the starting lineup, so injuries will be a factor, and they will ask two rookies to make contributions. But to find eight West teams that are better than the Phoenix this season, you’re really stretching things a bit.

CRUMBS

Thunder draws a crowd

The Thunder sold all 13,000 season tickets for their first season in Oklahoma City, and the team says it already has a waiting list. But the local fans that had a lot of fun watching Chris Paul and a talent-packed Hornets team for two years better lower their expectations for the artists formerly known as the Sonics, or this will be a short love affair.

QUICK HITTERS

• Nothing new in Amaré Stoudemire hiring another agent. Charles Grantham follows John Wolf, Bill Duffy and Rodney Rice among those who have represented Stoudemire in his brief NBA career. But Grantham will be an important figure moving forward, considering Stoudemire has an opt-out clause after the 2009-10 season.

• Do we really think that Anquan Boldin had no idea that agent Drew Rosenhaus was filling notebooks and airwaves in Miami with quotes like “It’s a shame that he’ll be wearing a Cardinals uniform against the Dolphins than the other way around.”

It’s a shame that Boldin appears to be the employee in this relationship instead of the other way around.

• Vince Young is fortunate to be playing in Tennessee, where the team is fairly strong and the fan base has been forgiving during his tenure. Can you imagine the pressure placed on Young in a big city with a team relying on him to win games every week? Here’s hoping he uses the next month to work on more than his knee.

THE HIGH FIVE

With Georgia coming to Tempe next weekend, let’s look at five huge regular-season wins for ASU at Sun Devil Stadium:

5. Oct. 19, 1996: ASU, 48, USC 35 (2OT) — In perhaps the most exciting game ever to be played in Tempe, ASU scored both on offense and defense in overtime to stay undefeated and turn back the Trojans.

4. Nov. 8, 1996: ASU 49, Cal 0 — From a suspense standpoint, it wasn’t much. But the blowout win over the Bears secured ASU’s first trip to the Rose Bowl after heartbreaking near-misses in 1982 and 1985.

3. Nov. 29, 1975: ASU 24, Arizona 21 — Folks in Tucson still argue that John Jefferson didn’t make “The Catch,” but the incredible horizontal grab saved an undefeated season and set the stage for the Fiesta Bowl win over Nebraska.

2. Oct. 15, 1978: ASU 20, USC 7 — One of the most talented college football teams of all time, the Trojans had 37 players who went on to play in the NFL and won a share of the national championship. But they were no match for the Devils in a win that raised the program to new heights.

1. Sept. 21, 1996: ASU 19, Nebraska 0 — The signature win of the 11-1 Rose Bowl team that came within a touchdown of a national championship.