It’s often said that the most important element in a Stanley Cup championship team is a hot goaltender, and a look back at past winners proves that to be true. From Patrick Roy to Mike Richter, from Ed Belfour to Dominik Hasek, nearly every Cup winner in the past two decades featured a world-class netminder. And while other important elements can be (and often are) overlooked – like having a right-shooting defenseman who can play on the power play point, for example – no NHL general manager can rightly consider his team a legitimate Cup contender without top-notch goaltending.

During the first round of this year’s playoffs, it has become readily apparent that the gap between the “haves” and “have-nots” where goaltending is con cerned will ultimately be the most critical differentiating factor as the field shrinks from its starting group of 16.

On the positive side of this equation, of course, are the New Jersey Devils. They boast the NHL’s most experienced playoff goalie in Martin Brodeur, and as a result, must be considered strong contenders to represent the Eastern Conference in the Finals – and, possibly, to win their fourth Stanley Cup in 11 years.The hottest goaltender in the NHL right now, Brodeur’s presence between the pipes gives the Devils confidence that no conference competitor – not even the highflying Ottawa Senators – can match. Should those two teams meet in the conference finals, it’s difficult to imagine Senators rookie Ray Emery out-dueling Brodeur in a seven-game series.

Emery, of course, was not expected to be starting for the Senators in these playoffs. But when Dominik Hasek suffered a groin injury playing for the Czech Republic in the Olympics, Emery stepped in ably, earning the NHL’s Defensive Player of the Month honor for March. When the playoffs arrived, he was fortunate to find himself matched up against underwhelming Tampa Bay Lightning goalie John Grahame. Predictably, the Senators – better in every facet of the game than Tampa – won the series easily in five games.And Grahame, replacing the departed Nikolai Khabibulin between the pipes for the defending Cup champs, was atrocious in goal.

When it became clear that Grahame wasn’t the right answer in goal,Lightning head coach John Tortorella launched into a tirade that will almost certainly mark the end of Grahame’s stay in Tampa, and also underscored just how important Khabibulin was back in 2004.

“Three goals on four shots,” fired an enraged Tortorella.”I’m getting tired of the 25 percent rule. It’s deflating. A save would be nice.”

Not surprisingly, back-up Sean Burke fared no better, and the Lightning’s Cup defense came to a rapid conclusion.Though Tortorella has referred to Khabibulin as a “banker” for accepting the Chicago Blackhawks’ lucrative contract offer, there is little doubt about whether he’d have preferred to have the “Bulin’ Wall” erected in the Tampa goal against Ottawa.

Looking around the rest of the league, it’s clear that playoff experience among the netminders is at an all-time premium. Entering this year’s playoffs, Brodeur, who turns 34 on Sunday, has played in 144 playoff games. That total dwarfs the combined total for the 11 other Eastern Conference goalies (66) who have seen action in the first round. Even more amazing, the 20 other goalies who have participated thus far combined for 182 games’ playoff experience, just 38 more than Brodeur.

Right now, the Sabres and Hurricanes hold 3-2 series leads in their respective series, while the Senators have already advanced to the second round. If Buffalo and Carolina emerge victorious, Brodeur will be the only remaining Eastern Conference starter with any playoff experience at all (Emery,Carolina’s Cam Ward, and Bufalo’s Ryan Miller are all participating in their first playoffs).

Now, this isn’t to say, of course, that experience rules over all other factors. Roy won his first Cup ring in his rookie season, and Brodeur won his first title as a sophomore. But by and large, experience plays a critical role in the Stanley Cup playoffs; that Roy and Brodeur enjoyed great success from the beginning was more a matter of their specific excellence than an argument against proper seasoning. And given that Brodeur still presumably has quite a few miles left in the tank, his experience at this point is an asset and not a detriment.

Looking out West, things aren’t much different. Two of the most experienced playoff goalies (Calgary’s Miikka Kiprusoff and Anaheim’s Jean-Sebastien Giguere) are dueling it out in the first round, so one of them will be eliminated this week. And though Jose Theodore has been stellar thus far for the Colorado Avalanche, it’s a bit early to declare him back to Hart Trophy-winning form. Of the rest of the starters, experience ranges from limited (Dwayne Roloson, 15 games) to nonexistent (Vesa Toskala, 0 games).

So here we are, once again looking at the dynastic Devils, who appeared stalled in first gear only two months ago, as a serious threat to win the Cup. Scott Stevens and Scott Niedermayer were crucial elements in the team’s previous Cup victories, but perhaps in the end, it will become apparent that the only essential ingredient in the team’s run of excellence was their eversteady netminder.

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.