Faster games, a quicker pace and plenty of special teams play. With even-strength scoring down from a year ago, the boys between the pipes have had to endure plenty of power plays, with little time between whistles to recover. Goalies have needed to be in shape as far as the cardiovascular aspect is concerned -- they spend plenty of energy moving from post to post and out to the top of their creases while anticipating a Brett Hull one-timer from the faceoff circle.

One offensive play that stands out -- and I hadn't seen it used a lot since the days of Mike Gartner in Washington and Minnesota: a speedy winger blowing by everyone at the blue line, busting down the wing at full speed. He looks like he's going to shoot … looks like he's going to shoot ... the goalie challenges ... the goalie challenges ... is he going to shoot? ... Nope. The winger goes around the net and wraps it home on the other side, while the goalie is swimming helplessly at the opposite post. That says something about the freedom and speed in the neutral zone -- and that's a good thing.

How about this: two goalie rankings so far and Marty Brodeur has yet to make an appearance.

My rankings are based on the most current five-game (two week) segments and are not cumulative. I sift through games played, wins, shots against and the competition.

Although Marty is clearly one of the best goalies in the world, he certainly hasn't faced the onslaught that the others have -- 11 shots against in the 2-1 loss to Carolina is an example. As we've said before, it's not his fault he plays on a well-oiled machine in N.J. I would love to see him get 35 shots against every night because we would marvel at his athletic ability and big-save composure.

Patrick Roy's chase to 1,000 games played is being temporarily delayed by a hip injury while Roman Turek is out of action for the pesky Flames with a finger injury. (This has little to do with goalie rankings, but I am very impressed with defenseman Jordan Leopold of the Flames. He is a star in the making.)

It looks like Jose Theodore is getting himself back on track after his strong performance in Carolina. He's gotten back to the basics and has worked hard with goalie coach Rollie Melanson. Did I hear Jeff Hackett say that if he gets traded to a non-contender that he would play the rest of the year and then possibly hang 'em up?

I may be speaking out of turn, but do they really make enough money now that they can just pack it in at a relatively young age (34)? The answer is yes. That's a shame. He has enough good hockey in him to play for three more years. I can't imagine a Terry Sawchuk or Johnny Bower, who had to wait until he was 29 to break into the league and 34 until his was a regular, just packing it in like Jeff is talking about. I am 38 and have been out of the game since 1990 because of two serious knee injuries. I wish I could strap them on for just one more game. (Jeff, think long and hard about this.) He can bring a lot of leadership and success to another organization.

Philadelphia has one strong squad, and I like that Ken Hitchcock has Robert Esche playing some key games. He and Roman Cechmanek have split the last five games – all wins. Last year, Esche made the rankings plenty of times while subbing for Sean Burke.

Let's get to the top five rankings:

Denis	5. Marc Denis, Columbus Blue Jackets 5 GP, 3-2-0, 2.06 GAA, .917 save percentage He has won three of his last five games and performed brilliantly against his former partner, Ron Tugnutt, in a 4 –2 win vs. the Dallas Stars. He made 38 saves in the game and was named the first star. Usually, on game days, it was Tugnutt who wouldn't talk to anyone. But on that morning, it was a game-faced Denis who wouldn't even talk to his ol' buddy Tugger. His preparation was rewarded. He followed up that win with a strong game vs. Buffalo, making 30 saves in the 3-2 win.
Roloson Fernandez	4. Dwayne Roloson 4 GP, 3-0-1, 1.92 GAA, .932 save percentage and Manny Fernandez, Minnesota Wild 4 GP, 3-1-0, 2.44 GAA, .911 save percentage Jacques Lemaire is getting the most out of his tandem at this point in the season, as both have split the last six games with only one loss between them. Rolie won 5-2 at L.A. on Monday, making 24 saves, after winning 2-1 vs. San Jose (19 saves, third star). He also played Colorado to a 3-3 deadlock in Denver, making 42 saves (and remarkably not being named as one of the three stars). Manny lost 4-2 at Vancouver, but won 3-2 against Colorado and was the third star in the 6-1 win at Phoenix.
Weekes	3. Kevin Weekes, Carolina Hurricanes 5 GP, 3-0-2, 1.74 GAA, .948 save percentage He has never played more than 60 games in a single NHL season, but with the way he is going, this could be the year -- much to the chagrin of his partner, Arturs Irbe. The fact is that Weekes is on a little roll right now and Paul Maurice has to ride him. It could be all year or it could be like last year's playoffs when both were pivotal. In this day and age, you have to have two guys with good attitudes to handle the wear and tear. Weekes tied Montreal 2-2, making 23 saves. At home vs. the Islanders, he was the third star in the 4-2 win (31 saves). He was the first star in a 2-1 win at New Jersey, making 34 saves.
Brathwaite	2. Fred Brathwaite, St. Louis Blues 5 GP, 4-01, 1.55 GAA, .925 save percentage He was given a little advice a while ago to walk through the door and shut it. Don't let anyone else (a goalie, that is) in. With Tom Barrasso as his new partner, Freddie took the reins and has led the Blues to four consecutive wins. Granted the Blues are playing like a team again and not a bunch of individuals, but Freddie is making the saves when they need them, as he did at Madison Square Garden when he made 23 saves in a 3-2 win against the Rangers. (He would be a natural in NY if the Blues ever wanted to move him.) He also made 19 saves and was named third star in a 6-1 drubbing on Long Island. That was after shutting out Nashville 7-0 and beating Calgary 4-3.
Hedberg	1. Johan Hedberg, Pittsburgh Penguins 5 GP, 4-0-1, 2.17 GAA, .930 save percentage The high flying Penguins are on a roll and the Moose is a huge reason why ...OK, Mario is playing well, too. Hedberg has won his last four starts, all against Eastern Conference teams. He won 5-3 vs. Tampa Bay, making 26 saves. In was named the third star in a 4-1 win in Ottawa, with Daniel Alfredsson and Marian Hossa combining for seven shots. In the 3-2 win vs. Washington, Hedberg was named first star after stopping 40 shots, including eight by Jaromir Jagr. The Moose also tied Montreal (3-3, 27 saves), and then beat up on Buffalo 5-2 to begin this segment of domination.

Darren Pang, a former goaltender with the Chicago Blackhawks, is a hockey analyst for ESPN. His goalie rankings appear every other week in Net Effect.