Like It or Not, Chris Osgood Gives Red Wings the Best Chance to Repeat

He's had a horrible season by any measure. A goals-against average of 3.18, a save percentage of .884—numbers that rank him 42nd, and 45th in the NHL, respectively.

These are the worst numbers of Chris Osgood's long career.

No one seems to know what has happened to the Osgood of last season, who was a top 10 goalie in the NHL and won the Jennings trophy with a 2.04 GAA and .914 save percentage—numbers that actually improved during the Wings' Stanley Cup run.

The Wings have tried their best to be patient with Osgood, and rightfully so. The man has played on three Stanley Cup winning teams in Detroit, starting in-goal for two of them. At one point this season, Osgood was even given a 10-day break to clear his head.

It doesn't help matters any that the Red Wings' starting goalie 1B, Ty Conklin, has vastly outperformed Osgood. Playing in roughly the same amount of games, Conklin has put up a GAA of 2.42 and a .912 save percentage. He also has six shutouts this season. Those numbers are the best of Conklin's career.

It seems like a no-brainer. When the playoffs arrive, a hot goaltender can make all the difference in the world.

Conklin is hot. Osgood is not.

It's not that simple, though. Osgood has played in 87 playoff games; Conklin has played in one, and it didn't go well for him.

Not only that, but Osgood has some pretty solid playoff numbers—a career 2.24 GAA and .910 save percentage.

With Osgood, you have something to base his performance on, such as his playoff experience. With Conklin, you just have a question mark. We've seen many a goalie perform well in the regular season and tank at playoff time.

This isn't a knock on Conklin by any means, but when you have a proven playoff goaltender, you have to start him.

Last year, Detroit had Hasek and Osgood, and although Hasek had a pretty decent season, Osgood outperformed him. Detroit still started Hasek at playoff time as he was the man with more experience. Hasek ended up playing awful; Osgood replaced him and won the cup.

Some say this is a similar situation, except Conklin coming in to replace a potentially failing Osgood might end up being just as disastrous.

Simply put, Detroit has the best chance to win the cup again this year, with Chris Osgood playing at a high level.

He might have the worst numbers of his career this season, but he still knows what's expected of him, and he knows what a playoff atmosphere is like.

Osgood will either raise his level of play and Detroit will flourish, or he won't, and Detroit could be playing a round of spring golf.

This team must have full faith in Osgood, but that doesn't necessarily mean they have to die by him.

Mike Babcock knows Ty Conklin is hungry, and although Conklin won't ever come out and say it, he wants a chance to prove himself.

That's why I believe Babcock won't hesitate to insert Conklin if Osgood's season-long slump follows him into the playoffs. He will be put on a short leash and given a couple games to prove himself. If he pulls a 2008 Hasek, that will be it for Osgood, and Detroit will hold their collective breath, as Ty Conklin makes his first ever playoff start.

If that happens, Conklin will finally understand the enormous pressure that comes with being Detroit's playoff goaltender. It killed Manny Legace's Detroit career, and ended Dominik Hasek's on a sour note.

However, there is also the flip side. If Conklin could backstop a finals run, he will enter the annals of Detroit hockey lore. It's also likely that Ken Holland will ensure him a spot on the team for as long as he wants it.

For now, though, we Detroit fans should remember what Chris Osgood has done for us, and instead of spewing hate at him on the cusp of the playoffs, we should be there to boost his confidence and cheer him as his name is announced for game one.

As good of a season as Conklin has had, he's the journeyman pickup Detroit got just last offseason. Chris Osgood is second only to Terry Sawchuck in Detroit career victories. He's our goalie, like it or not.

Hopefully, he'll make us proud once again.