A contrast in styles
Osgood’s an extremely popular player but that’s not just because he can make others laugh and smile. He’s accepted by his teammates not just for his personality but also because he stands for the right things such as sacrificing for the team, having a solid work ethic, and subordinating individual goals for the interests of the team.

In a technical sense Osgood’s teammates know what to expect from him in goal more than they do from Hasek. That’s because as with most goalies the style of Osgood’s play is repetitive to a great degree. In contrast, Hasek reinvents the wheel on almost every save. A player closing in to get off a shot on Hasek is facing a blank canvas and a lot of times what Hasek does in defending the shot won’t end up looking like somebody who painted by numbers. Such variety is great to watch but hard to play in front if you’re a blueliner.

It’s far easier for defensemen to play in front of a goalie whose style is predictable rather than unpredicatable because they have a better idea where the rebounds are going to wind up and which pucks the goalie will be able to smother and hang on to. With Hasek in net, defensemen don’t know on any given shot which way he’s going to be facing, where the puck might be after a save or what he is going to do with the puck when he comes out of the net. Hasek’s going to be a Hall-of-Famer having played goal this way but the degree of predictability that Osgood brings helps the Red Wings defensively.

Has Osgood been underappreciated?
For all of what he has achieved over his career, Osgood has never had a great amount of recognition come his way. When some look back on Detroit’s Stanley Cup in 1998 with Osgood in the net, they take the position the Red Wings won not because of their goalie but in spite of him. I understand how that conclusion can be drawn not so much because Osgood gave up some long goals but because there are those that feel the tremendous team he had in front of him (including nine potential Hall-of-Famers) could make just about any goalie a Stanley Cup winner.

But the fact remains that Osgood is a champion and he has a pair of Stanley Cups (1997 as a backup and 1998 as a starter). The one thing that can’t be measured with him is the impact he has on his team’s locker room and on his teammates. What’s so important is that players believe in their goalies and to a man the Red Wings believe in Osgood. There’s no way to measure the impact that his personality and his team-first mentality has had on the guys in front of him. And we’ll never know how much glue he provided for all of those future Hall-of-Famers in front of him but don’t sell him short in that area.

If Osgood ends up taking the Red Wings to another Stanley Cup, he has to merit consideration for election to the Hall of Fame. Like a lot of pro athletes he has learned the importance of a good, strong work ethic as he has gotten older. It was something he lacked earlier in his career but not anymore.

During his first stay in Detroit, Osgood found himself in a somewhat similar situation to what has happened to Hasek this postseason. During the 1996-97 regular season Osgood and Mike Vernon split time as the starter in goal, but in the playoffs virtually all the playing time went to Vernon, who ended up winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Red Wings won their first Stanley Cup since 1955. You can bet Detroit fans wouldn’t mind history repeating itself this spring.

Print this Email this Blog this  IM this

MORE FROM NHL

NHL Section Front

Flyers refuse to go down to Pens without a fight Flyers defensemen Timonen, Coburn close to return 'Still alive,' Stars upbeat after Game 4 victory Red Wings' Franzen to miss Game 5 Clement: Lidstrom a true gem of a defenseman   Special feature: Swedes playing super for Wings Special feature: Stanley Cup surprise players Who has Edge in conference finals? You decide Impact players in conference finals Opinion: Canadiens to be Cup contender in '09 NHL Section Front   Add NHL headlines to your news reader: