Goaltending doesn't win Stanley Cups. Plenty of great goaltenders don't win Stanley Cups. Likewise, plenty of goaltenders who have great playoffs -- in recent history, from Ron Hextall in 1987 to Ollie Kolzig in 1998 -- don't win, either. But while great goaltending may not be all a team needs on its way to a championship, chances are it's not getting very far without it. Chris Osgood notwithstanding.

It was with this in mind that the hearts of Buffalo Sabres fans everywhere sank Sunday afternoon when the world found out Dominik Hasek wasn't dressed for Game One of the Eastern Conference final against Toronto. And sank some more as it became apparent he wouldn't be back in the foreseeable future.

Dwayne Roloson?

This team's best chance at fulfilling 30 years of hopes and dreams now depend on the play of Dwayne Roloson?

Dwayne Roloson by Meredith Martini

Heck yeah, Dwayne Roloson!

The 29-year-old native of Simcoe, Ontario is number 30 in your program but number one in your heart, particularly after he beat the Leafs 5-4 that Sunday afternoon. And when you look at it, it really isn't all a bad thing. Here's how Roloson and that other guy stack up blow for blow:

Hasek has won four Vezina Trophies, two straight Hart Trophies, a Jennings Trophy and two Lester B. Pearson Awards. Roloson was a first team (first team, now) Hockey East All-American in 1993. Advantage: Hasek.

Roloson was the only alumnus of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell in the NHL this season. Hasek was one of six former Cze-Dukla Jihlava players in the league. Advantage: Roloson, on the theory that the Cze-Dukla program must be better.

Hasek wears sweater number 39 because his favored number 9 was unavailable to goalies when he came to North America. Roloson wears number 30 because that's what a goalie is supposed to wear, for crying out loud. 9? Advantage: Roloson.

Roloson was signed as a free agent by the Sabres to replace Steve Shields, who racked up a 2.22 goals-against and .921 save percentage in 37 games for San Jose in 1998-99. Hasek was acquired in a trade for Stephane Beauregard, who sucked. Advantage: Roloson.

Hasek was given his first big chance in the NHL when Grant Fuhr went down with an injury. The Flames gave Roloson a chance when they traded Rick Tabaracci away for Aaron Gavey. Advantage: Roloson.

Hasek won the Vezina Trophy that year and posted the first sub-2.00 goals-against since Bernie Parent. Roloson didn't. Advantage: Hasek.

HASEK is worth 12 points in Scrabble. ROLOSON is worth only seven. Advatange: Hasek.

But you can make ROLOSON using all seven letters, for a 50 point bonus! Advantage: Roloson.

Dominik Hasek by Meredith Martini

Hasek left Chicago because Mike Keenan preferred former first-round pick Jimmy Waite. Roloson left Calgary because Brian Sutter preferred former Leafs, Flyers and Penguins backup Ken Wregget. Advantage: Hasek.

Hasek was left unprotected in the 1993 expansion draft. Roloson will be left unprotected in the 1999 expansion draft. Advantage: Push.

In 1993, Anaheim picked journeyman Bill Houlder off the Sabres roster instead of Hasek. Barring a trade, in 1999 Atlanta will likely pick mega-prospect Martin Biron instead of Roloson. Advantage: Roloson.

Hasek won an Olympic gold medal in 1998. Roloson was AHL Player of the Week once in 1997. Advantage: Hasek.

You can rearrange the letters in Roloson's name to Spell "Dolores Wynona." The best you can do with Hasek's is "Is Khaki Demon." Advantage: Roloson.

Hasek is 5-3-0 with a 2.19 goals-against average the last three years against Toronto. Roloson is 1-3-0, 3.58, through and including Sunday's game. Advantage: Hasek.

Hasek makes more in a year than the rest of his teammates combined. Roloson, alerted to the possibility that he might start in Game One, nevertheless did not spring for a couple $170 tickets for his Niagara Falls-based parents, rationalizing, "Who wants to go to a game and watch their kid sit on the bench?" Advantage: Hasek. (It's EIGHT MILLION bucks a year, after all...)

Nicknames: Hasek -- The Dominator. Roloson -- Rollie. Advantage: Hasek.

Hasek has a Master Card commercial. It would have been really cool to see Roloson in one of those ESPN hockey commercials going through all the things he does to keep himself awake during games, maybe have him listening to some books on tape on his headphones, or shopping by phone, or getting a hold of the controls for the scoreboard and flashing some phony messages on the JumboTron, that kind of thing. Wouldn't that have been cool? Advantage: Roloson.

Even though the Sabres organization has expended tremendous time, resources and money to develop Biron and isn't doing him professional harm by letting him play full time in the AHL -- quite to the contrary, in fact, the NHL's nonsensical expansion draft rules dictate that the team can't protect both Hasek and Biron. So speculation in the media has been that Darcy Reiger is making covert inquiries as to what teams might trade him for Hasek. If true, Roloson actually has a better chance of being back with the Sabres next year than Hasek. Advantage: Roloson.

Masks: Roloson -- snorting buffalo in team colors of black, red, gray and white with "Rollie" printed over chin guard. Hasek -- 20-year-old beat-up helmet with a cage bolted on. Advantage: Hasek, who gets points for character.

Hasek shares a name with Slovakian ATP Tour pro Dominik Hrbaty. Roloson shares a name with the short, skinny guy from "What's Happening?" Advantage: Roloson.

Hasek once beat Martin Brodeur and the Devils 1-0 in four overtimes, stopping 70 shots. Roloson made 15 saves to shut out the Canucks, who were without Mark Messier, Alex Mogilny, Ed Jovanovski and Mattias Ohlund, on February 28, 1999. Advantage: Hasek.

The final tally is 10-10, with one push. So see? Things aren't that bad after all without Hasek. The only difficulty might be that people might start calling the Sabres a one-man team which would be nowhere without Dwayne Roloson.

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