ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Blues' seemingly endless search for a goalie ended Tuesday when they acquired veteran Chris Osgood from the New York Islanders.

		Tue., March 11 Chris Osgood is a huge upgrade over Brent Johnson, who has struggled mightily recently. Johnson's problems with hard work and attention to detail have been well-documented, while Osgood is a veteran guy who has won the Stanley Cup and will not be bothered by everything going on around him. And Osgood doesn't have to be the goalie he was in Detroit to be successful in St. Louis. The Blues play great defense and all he has to do is make the first save. This also sets up some potentially interesting scenarios down the road in the playoffs. Colorado has faced Osgood many times in the postseason, and the Red Wings probably know him better than any team in the league.

The Blues are fifth in the Western Conference and just six points behind Central Division-leading Detroit despite often shaky goaltending from Brent Johnson and Fred Brathwaite. Rookie Curtis Sanford played well in three straight recent games after Johnson was injured, but was pulled after giving up three quick goals in a 7-2 loss to Detroit on Friday.

"We felt that we wanted to add experience. Chris Osgood offers us that,'' Blues general manager Larry Pleau said. He said Osgood and Johnson will compete for the spot as the team's No. 1 goalie.

In another deal hours before Tuesday's trade deadline, the Blues acquired forward Valeri Bure from the Florida Panthers for prospect defenseman Mike Van Ryn.

In exchange for Osgood, the Blues gave the Islanders prospect Justin Papineau and a second-round pick in this year's draft. The Blues also received a 2003 third-round pick from the Islanders.

It was the second of two deals the Islanders pulled off before the NHL trade deadline. New York acquired defenseman Janne Niinimaa and a second round pick from the Edmonton Oilers for forwards Brad Isbister and Raffi Torres.

In 37 games this season, Osgood was 17-14-4 with a 2.92 goals-against average and .894 save percentage. He has missed much of the season with an ankle injury but returned last week. Last season, he was 32-25-6 with a 2.50 goals-against average while leading the Islanders to their first playoff appearance since 1993.

Osgood, 30, is earning $4 million this year and can be a restricted free agent after this season.

"Truth be told, we were going to part company with Chris at the end of the year because of the contract situation,'' Islanders general manager Mike Milbury said. "We did get what we believed to be something of value for Chris. There was not a large market for goalies at this stage of the system."

"I have to admit I had a smile on my face when I heard I was going to St. Louis," Osgood said. "Obviously they've got a very good team and a chance to do some big things in the playoffs and that's what it's all about. That's what I was used to in Detroit."

Osgood, claimed by New York off waivers from Detroit before last season. insisted he doesn't hold any grudges with the Red Wings. He's more concerned about his new team.

He was already in Vancouver with the Islanders, who played the Canucks on Tuesday night. He will join the Blues when they get to Vancouver for a game on Thursday.

"I've got a couple of days to think about how I have to get things started when St. Louis gets here," said Osgood, who played Saturday for the first time in nearly seven weeks following an ankle injury. "It might take a couple of games to get back into the swing of things, but hopefully I can go in there and play great right away, that's what I m hoping to do."

Niinimaa, a two-time member of the Finnish Olympic team, has four goals and 24 assists in 63 games with Edmonton, which shipped leading scorer Anson Carter to the New York Rangers in a separate deal ahead of the trading deadline.

"Janne is a guy who can log 25 minutes for us,'' Islanders coach Peter Laviolette said. "Our defense should be in pretty good shape for years to come."

Isbister, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound native of Edmonton, has 10 and 13 assists in 53 games, but was recently a healthy scratch for the Islanders.

"I grew up a huge Oilers fan," Isbister said. "They have a lot of history there and I have a lot of family there. I've always liked the way they played."

The Oilers also get Torres, who has been playing in AHL Bridgeport since early February, has no goals and just five assists in 17 games with New York this season.

Papineau, a 23-year-old center, had two goals and one assist in 11 games for St. Louis this season and had 20 goals and 16 assists in 42 games with Worcester of the AHL.

In addition to Bure, the Blues received a conditional draft pick in 2004 in the trade with Florida.

The 28-year-old Bure has just five goals and 21 assists this season and has been out for about a month with a sprained knee. He resumed skating Saturday, and it is not clear when he'll be able to play.

"I don't know how close I am to coming back,'' Bure said. "The doctors haven't given me a timeframe.''

Bure's best season was with Calgary in 1999-00, when he had 35 goals and 40 assists. That season he and brother, Pavel, set a league record for goals by siblings with 93.

Bure has 152 goals and 194 assists in 548 career games.

Van Ryn had three assists in 20 games with the Blues this season, where he spent a chunk of time in the minors. He had two goals and eight assists in 48 games last season.

"He is a first-round draft pick and a great skater with a huge upside,'' Panthers general manager Rick Dudley said. "He is another young defenseman with an inordinate amount of talent.''

Dudley said the emergence of Matt Cullen, Jaroslav Bednar and Stephen Weiss made the trade possible.

"Giving up Valeri was tough because he is such a good man. I personally like him a lot, but this was ultimately in the best interest of the hockey club,'' Dudley said.

The Panthers are 11th in the East..