I chose this card for one main reason.
Chris Osgood recently became just the 10th goalie in the history of the NHL to reach 400 wins. I am still coming to grips with the fact that he will be a serious candidate for the Hall Of Fame.
Ugh.
1994/95 Topps Stadium Club
#138 Chris Osgood
#138 Chris Osgood
This is how I still remember Ozzy....doing a few stretches, taking a few laps and then taking off his helmet and plunking down on the end of the bench to watch an exciting game of hockey.
Before I dissect his career, let's take a closer look at the photo.
At first glance, the card might not seem very interesting. True....what is so exciting about a goalie warming up? What I like about this card is that is shows me stuff that I don't normally get to see.
For example...I like seeing the way the back of the pad wraps around and protects the back of the leg. I like how the straps feed through the skate. I like the simple detail of the snow built up on the skate blade. I like seeing the underside of the blocker.
The camera angle and the way Osgood is using the boards makes for a bit of an illusion photo. It took me a couple moments to realize he is at the players bench and that his right leg is up and he is stretching around to his right.
I also really like the focus on his face. If only the bar on his cage wasn't righ in front of his eye. That would have made for a much better photo.
The stream of banners in the background looks cool, but an empty arena isn't as great as it could have been.
I like photos like this (when done right) as opposed to just a 'skate around' shot or the infamous 'backup-goalie-holding-his-mask-and-skating-with-a-towel-around-his-neck-during-warmup' shot. Those are lame.
Now onto Chris' career.
Ugh.
First off, let's take a look at the exclusive list he just joined.
NHL GOALIES WITH 400 WINS
1. Martin Brodeur 607
2. Patrick Roy 551
3. Ed Belfour 484
4. Curtis Joseph 454
5. Terry Sawchuk 447
6. Jacques Plante 437
7. Tony Esposito 423
8. Glenn Hall 407
9. Grant Fuhr 403
10. Chris Osgood 401
1. Martin Brodeur 607
2. Patrick Roy 551
3. Ed Belfour 484
4. Curtis Joseph 454
5. Terry Sawchuk 447
6. Jacques Plante 437
7. Tony Esposito 423
8. Glenn Hall 407
9. Grant Fuhr 403
10. Chris Osgood 401
Out of the other 9 goalies, only Brodeur (still playing), Belfour (eligible in 2011) and Joseph (eligible in 2012) are not in the Hall Of Fame. That's extremely impressive company.
What impressed me the most about Osgood's accomplishment is that he has had a winning record in every single one of his NHL seasons up until last year when he went 7-9-4-1. To have a winning record as a New York Islander and to have a winning record as a St. Louis Blue (when they were really not good) is very impressive.
He cracked the 30-win mark only 6 times (that's 30 wins....not 40) so it's his consistency and longevity that has taken him to the magical 400 mark.
While his career has had a lot of ups and downs, his numbers don't lie. To me, he still comes across as an underrated, often backup-ish type goalie. Never the one to take the reigns for an extended period of time.
In an era where the evolution of goalies was pretty dramatic, Osgood found a way to remain an important component to his team.
InGoalMag.com recently posted a really good article on Chris Osgood and how he had to re-invent himself in order to stay relevant in the ever changing league.
I'll admit, I have a little more respect for the guy.
Ugh.
The one final aspect of Osgood's career that should be taken into serious consideration when determining if he is HHOF worthy...(forgive the poor quality)
Yup.. He's one of 8 goalies to have ever scored a goal in the NHL.
Or how about this...you gotta wait for it. :)
I miss the good ol' days.
Anyways.....Chris Osgood.....HHOF?
Your thoughts?
like I said on my blog last week about this... he's got the second est winning % and second best GAA on that list. If you think Belfour or Joseph should be in, then Ozzy should be.
ReplyDeleteAnd let's face it, with Fuhr in the Hall, the bar has been set REALLY low. Pretty much any goalie can get in now.
I've been thinking about writing an Osgood post asking the same question. I wrote a little about my thoughts on Canuck's blog, but to sum it up here: I don't consider Osgood a HOFer. To me, he is like Mike Vernon, Richter, Barrasso, etc. and those guys are certainly not HOFers. He is the baseball equivalent of Fred McGriff, IMO.
ReplyDeleteI have nothing against Osgood and will understand if he gets in. The issue is the HOF; the criteria is all out of whack and half the guys in there shouldn't be. I'm actually working on a post about this and hope to separate the wheat from the chaff.
I think the toughest hurdle for Osgood to overcome in order to get in the HOF will be the number of 'guys in line' before him.
ReplyDeleteJoe Sakic, Mike Modano, Nick Lidstrom, Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, Martin Brodeur, Dominik Hasek, Ed Belfour, Joe Nieuwendyk, Doug Gilmour, Jaromir Jagr, the list goes on.
The pecking order might be too deep for Osgood to make it in right away. Will people remember him 10 years after he retires?
If Joseph gets in having never won a cup...and he probably will because he played in Toronto...then there should be no doubt that Osgood should go in. Not to mention the 400+ wins. He isn't going to finish his career with as many as I thought, though. I thought he had a shot at getting past Joseph into #4 all time, but Howard has taken over in Detroit. However, he should pass Hall this year to get into 8th. And if Detroit re-signs him for another year to back up Howard (should he also sign), which would probably get him to 7th. So, how do you keep a 3 time (maybe more after this year) Stanley Cup champion and #8 in all time wins goalie OUT of the hall?
ReplyDeleteIt's scary, but you're right.
ReplyDeleteI think the only thing keeping him out is the bigger names looking to get in. There are only so many slots per year. Will he get his due right away? Will he be remembered 10 years after the fact if he doesn't get in right away?
:-) ...is it really scary? its not really that wrong for a top 10 all time wins goalie with 3 cups getting into the hall is it? those players you listed are definitely first ballot type guys. i guess it will depend on who retires this year and next year mostly that will decide whether he has to wait a few years or not.
ReplyDelete