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September 14, 2005 Record-Eagle/Douglas Tesner Detroit Red Wings' goalie Chris Osgood makes a stop during training camp in Traverse City on Tuesday. Osgood glad to be back with WingsSecond stint with Detroit under wayByRecord-Eagle sports editor TRAVERSE CITY - After taking his physical Monday, Detroit goaltender Chris Osgood walked outside Centre ICE and started signing autographs for Red Wings fans who had been waiting patiently most of the morning. "It's good to have you back," a fan shouted as Osgood worked his way down the line. Well, Osgood's glad to be back. On Tuesday, the veteran goalie began his second stint with the Red Wings as training camp officially opened. "I'm excited, fired up to be skating with the guys again," Osgood said. After spending freely on Dominic Hasek and Curtis Joseph, the Wings are taking a more frugal approach this season, turning the goaltending chores over to Osgood and Manny Legace as they seek a fourth Stanley Cup since 1997. "It's different, that's for sure," Legace cracked. "They didn't bring in a guy making $9 million." Osgood, who's replacing Joseph, was the team's biggest free agent acquisition during the off-season. He was part of Detroit's Stanley Cup titles in 1997 and 1998. He was the Wings No. 1 goalie when they repeated in 1998. Osgood played in St. Louis in 2003-04, the last season before the lockout, posting a 31-25-8 record with a 2.24 goals against average. Legace, meanwhile, played in a career-high 41 games for the Wings. He had a 2.12 goals against average. New coach Mike Babcock said he hopes one will emerge as the clear-cut starter. "We'll work that out over the exhibition games to see who is going to start day one and who is going to get an opportunity," Babcock said. "I've never ever been a two-goalie guy. I like having one goalie. I don't like to have to make up my mind. "I like one guy to be better than the other guy. And I think they want one guy to be better than the other guy, so they've got to figure that out." Osgood said he is ready for the challenge. "There's no goalie controversy," he said. "Whoever is playing better will play and the other guy will work hard in practice, support him and get ready to play as well when he's in there. We're all about winning. "This is not going to be about who's going to play how many games, who's going to do what. We both want to play well and win the Stanley Cup as a tandem. That's our main goal." Legace agreed. "It's a tandem," Legace said. "Me and Ozzie. We work well together. He's a good guy. I don't see it as a big competition. Whoever is playing better is going to be playing. We're going to push each other and root for each other like we did when he was here before. "We love being around each other," he added. "We play golf and workout and everything together. It's good to have him back." This is a much different camp for Osgood than his last one with the Wings in 2001. His future was in limbo then after Detroit signed Hasek. With Legace as the backup, Osgood was the odd man out. He was eventually waived and claimed by the New York Islanders. Osgood said he understood the situation and was ready to go. "I had been here for 10 years and I knew it was time to leave," he admitted. "I felt like it had runs its course and it was time for me to go elsewhere, to accept a new challenge and prove what I could do." Osgood called his first year with the Islanders one of his most enjoyable in hockey. He was subsequently traded to St. Louis in 2003. He's still in the Central Division of the Western Conference, but now he's back with Detroit. "I was fortunate it worked out that way for me," Osgood said. Holland kept in touch with Osgood during the lockout and called him on the first day of free agency. "I've known him since I was 14," Osgood said. "We grew up in the same city, played the same position, played for the same team in juniors. We've had a good relationship. When he called me the first day of free agency it was pretty much a lock. It was just a matter of getting the contract done. "There's only 60 jobs in the NHL for goalies," Osgood added. "That's not very many. Your options are limited. But when I knew I could come back here that was the only thing I really focused on." His teammates expect him to fit right in. "He's excited to be back and that's a plus for us because I think he's going to be that much more determined to do well and to play hard for us," Kirk Maltby said. "We expect nothing less." See Related Stories: Babcock brings 'high intensity' to Wings - September 14, 2005 Zetterberg's injury 'not a problem' - September 14, 2005 Datsyuk contract saga not done yet - September 13, 2005 Wings back in TC after 1-year absence - September 13, 2005
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