When will Chris Osgood ever get the respect he deserves? Osgood has won two Stanley Cups in his career, more than many, more highly touted goalies. All he has done is win, yet he doesn't get the attention of other goalies with flashier styles but less impressive results. In this year's playoffs, Osgood is 6-0 with a 1.52 goals against average and a .957 save percentage. He also has one shutout to his credit.

During the regular season, Osgood had better numbers than Dominik Hasek yet "The Dominator" was given the start at the beginning of the playoffs. Despite his success, you rarely hear the media rave about Osgood's role in the Red Wings' success. If Detroit wins the Cup this year, perhaps Osgood will get some long overdue appreciation.

The game six marathon between the Sharks and Stars was a game for the ages. Both teams were exhausted in the later periods but both teams played gutsy hockey and kept hitting and giving their all. The goalies were especially heroic with Marty Turco making 61 saves (including 31 in the overtime periods) and Evgeni Nabokov, who played the tragic hero while making 53 saves (including 30 in the three and a half extra sessions). Even the officials were left shaking their heads after some saves that kept the game going well past 2:00 AM in the east. It was simply great hockey.

The back-and-forth play during the overtimes was thrilling and nerve racking. Anybody who wants to allow shootouts in the playoffs should be made to watch this game which is all the evidence you need to know it should never happen. In a playoff game, shootouts would be anti-climactic. An overtime marathon like game six becomes a lifelong hockey memory for any fan who was there or who even watched the game on television. The league would be foolish to allow playoff games to be decided by a skills competition.

It is likely Sharks' head coach Ron Wilson will be looking for work shortly. According to published reports, Wilson's abrasive style has caused him to lose the locker room. The Sharks have failed to get past the second round of the playoffs in each of the past three seasons despite having arguably the best talent in the league, so the feeling is that it's time for a change in San Jose.

Brenden Morrow has really been a difference-maker for the Stars during the playoffs. He has seven goals and 11 points in 12 games and two of his goals have been OT game winners. Morrow leads by example and has proven himself a worthy captain and successor to Mike Modano.

Another subtle difference maker for the Stars has been Sergei Zubov. In five games since his return from a long term injury, Zubov has four points with three of those coming on the power play. Despite not being in mid-season playing shape, Zubov was on the ice for almost 54 minutes in game six against San Jose. In addition to his strong power play skills, Zubov is a key to the Stars' transition game and makes a sure and smart first pass out of the defensive zone to key the Dallas attack.

The Pittsburgh Penguins showed class when asked to comment about injured Rangers' forward, Sean Avery. Avery is New York's agitator and is considered the most hated man in the NHL. Yet when Avery was hospitalized before game four of the Rangers-Pens series with a ruptured spleen, to a man the Penguins wished him a speedy recovery despite his past run-ins with many members of the club.

It will be almost impossible for the Penguins to re-sign Marian Hossa this summer, so any chance they have to win the Cup with Hossa in the lineup will likely be limited to this spring. Hossa has been a key addition to the Penguins in the playoffs, and his presence makes it very difficult for any team to key on all of the Penguins' high powered offensive players.

The feeling here is that Jaromir Jagr will be playing somewhere off Broadway next season. The Rangers are no longer built around Jagr, and he prefers a team with a more aggressive, "run and gun" style of offense which is definitely not what the Rangers played this year. The Broadway Blues will look very different up front next season if Jagr departs and Brendan Shanahan and/or Marty Straka retire as expected. Look for the Rangers to make a major run at Marian Hossa come July 1st.

The poor play of Canadiens' goalie Carey Price in the second round will raise serious questions as to whether or not he is the answer in Montreal. The fans and media in Montreal are hockey-obsessed, and Price will be under close scrutiny all season. Until he proves himself in the playoffs, Price will have his detractors any time he goes into a slump. His poor fundamental play with his glove hand was a concern. His loss of confidence may be tougher to correct.

The Flyers' offensive depth continues to be a big asset for the team in the playoffs. In the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Flyers had nine different players who had at least six points (or an average of a point ever other game). Opponents always have to be on their guard against Philadelphia regardless of which forward combination is out on the ice.

Daniel Briere has three game winning goals in the playoffs and leads the Flyers with 14 points. Pittsburgh native R.J. Umberger has been red hot in the playoffs, tallying nine goals in 12 games after scoring only 13 times in 74 regular season contests. Umberger has scored eight of those goals in the Flyers' last five games and two of them have been game winning tallies.

Well, we had the marathon I predicted in my last column. Here are my picks for this round: In the West, Detroit will get by Dallas in six games while the Penguins will win the East in six because they simply have too many weapons for the Flyers to contain over the long haul.