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That Chris Osgood is four wins away from backstopping the Detroit Red Wings to another Stanley Cup triumph has all the trappings of a classic feel-good story: Discarded for a time by the organization with which he won a championship 10 years ago, Osgood returned to back-up to Dominik Hasek, only to work his way back into the starter's job and win 10 of his next 12 decisions.
That Osgood is also four wins away from backstopping the Red Wings to a championship for only $850,000 is a sign that once again, salary-cap management may be the single most underrated skill, in today's NHL — and that in the matter of playoff goaltending, an impressive pedigree sometimes counts for very little.
Consider that in the past half-dozen seasons, for every Martin Brodeur that's won a Stanley Cup championship, there has also been a Ray Emery that's backstopped his team to the final, or a Cam Ward, or an Arturs Irbe and even one year, a Jussi Markkanen, who took over from an injured Dwayne Roloson and took the Edmonton Oilers to within one victory of the 2006 Stanley Cup title.
At mid-season, one might have been able to forecast a Red Wings-Penguins final, but if that were to occur, the odds favored a Hasek-Ty Conklin match-up in goal. Hasek more or less alternated with Osgood throughout the regular season to stay fresh (he is, after all, 43), but he was their first choice to start in the post-season.
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As for Conklin, he came on after Penguins' starter Marc-Andre Fleury suffered a high ankle sprain and was their No. 1 man for a third of the season, keeping them in contention for top spot in the conference, despite injuries to Fleury and to Sidney Crosby. But Fleury, who — like Osgood - is also a bargain at a salary of $1,294,750, won the job back in the final month and excelled in these playoffs.
The quality that the 35-year-old Osgood shares with the 23-year-old Fleury is their relative steadiness between the pipes. It's something Osgood emphasized in a recent interview, in answer to a question about how he viewed his role on a team that rarely gave up more than 22 shots per game.
"I would say three things," said Osgood. "First, you have to be consistent. Second, make the big saves when you have to; and third, you have be a calming influence, so our team can go out and play and do what they have to, to score goals.
"Some guys say they need 40 shots to get into a game. I've never thought that. To me, it is mind over matter; if you think like that, you're psyching yourself out before the game starts. I don't care if I get 15 shots or 20 or 40, I can play good and work with whatever I'm given. That's my approach."
A decade ago, when the Red Wings handed Osgood the starting job, after Mike Vernon was traded away to the San Jose Sharks that might have been difficult for him to do. Osgood was a bundle of nervous energy, working himself into such frenzy that it often had a direct negative bearing on his results.
Now? With maturity also came serenity. After 14 seasons in three different organizations, he still looks like a baby-faced kid, but he is comfortable in his skin and so even-keeled that his calming influence is transmitted to the team playing in front of him.
Kirk Maltby, one of four current Red Wings players with three Stanley Cup rings (the others are Nicklas Lidstrom, Kris Draper and Tomas Holmstrom), was there for Osgood's first go-round with the organization.
"The goaltenders in Detroit since I've been here take a lot of pressure," said Maltby. "They don't get enough glory when we win and when we lose, they get too much of the blame. Chris did a great job for us (in 1998); he was as big a reason as anybody why we have that one Stanley Cup."
With 363 career wins, Osgood is 14th on the NHL's all-time victory list and next year, has a chance to leapfrog such luminaries as Tom Barrasso (369), Andy Moog (372), John Vanbiesbrouck (374), Vernon (385) and Hasek (389). Grant Fuhr (403) and Glenn Hall (407) are within reach, provided he plays two more seasons, a reasonable assumption given that he signed a modest three-year $4.5 million extension back in early January when he was 19-2-1, a contract that should carry him through to the end of his career.
Next year, when Hasek's $4.1 million comes off the books, the Red Wings will have new options with their goaltending tandem. Osgood may never catch Terry Sawchuk at 447 career wins, but last Monday night, in the 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars that put the Red Wings into the final, he passed Sawchuk on the Detroit all-time list for playoff wins (with 48).
"Obviously, I've been fortunate to get to know Chris a little bit," said Maltby. "Even though he left there for a few years, he helped that St. Louis franchise and he helped that Islander franchise by solidifying them in net.
"Maybe (he doesn't get the attention) because he's too quiet. He's just a guy who goes about his business. He doesn't look to do the interviews. He doesn't look for the attention. He just goes out and plays. He's already got a Stanley Cup; we'd love for him to do that again."
