SB Nation - James Neal

Dallas Stars Holiday Wishlist

Brad G — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:35:20 -0000

As we slow down a bit for the Holiday weekend ahead of us (not to worry, we'll still be here for every game, pre and post) we take time to reflect on the year gone by, and all of the things we have to be thankful for. As Stars fans, these things may not be particularly clear on the surface, nor terribly abundant in nature, but they are there.

I mused, for example, last night at the AAC that although Mike Modano seems to have his good days and his bad, watching his jersey flap behind him as he cruises through the neutral zone is a pleasure that will soon be gone. I am thankful for every game he suits up. We watched the emergence of Jamie Benn this year, and James Neal has continued to grow his game to the delight of us all, and the Texas Rangers might actually get sold, which can only be a good thing.

Let us not forget that 2009 saw the birth of Defending Big D.com. We''ve had a real blast covering this team and starting a community we feel will continue to blossom in 2010.

All of these warm feelings and reflections aside, let's face it: This is a time of year where people are making lists (and some are checking them twice.) And like the greedy little boys we once were, we have a list of our own.

So we present to you the Defending Big D.com Stars wishlist: A list of things each of us here would like to see the Hockey Gods stuff down the Stars metaphorical chimney...

After the jump, Brandon, Brandon, Art and Brad give their biggest Stars holiday wishes...

Art Middleton:

My Christmas wish for the Dallas Stars is simple and straight forward: I want David Steckel.

Eric Belanger, Vernon Fiddler or even Rich Peverly would also be be quite acceptable. The running theme with all these guys? They are solid depth players and can all be considered faceoff specialists and all are over 53 percent on faceoffs this season. And if the Stars were to get Fiddler they'd get the added bonus of having a faceoff specialist who plays wing.

Imagine third period, a minute left in the game and down by one but the faceoff is in the offensive zone... Stars can throw Brad Richards and Fiddler onto the ice so that even if Fiddler gets thrown out of the faceoff dot, Richards can come in and they'd still have decent chance to gain puck possession.

The Stars in case you haven't really noticed have struggled this season at the faceoff dot and could use the help. Too many times when the Stars need to win a critical faceoff win - especially when on special teams - they simply aren't doing it. The NHL is growing into a puck possession league and all the top teams have at least one if not more player they can turn to to win the really important faceoffs. The Stars have nothing of the sort.

The four players I listed are guys that with the right kind of deal could be brought to Dallas so it's not like I am asking for the moon here either. Who is part of that "right kind of deal" for Dallas? Why not Fabian Brunnstrum and a defensive prospect like Hubert Labrie or Dan Jancevski? For Fiddler or Peverly I'd even throw in a 2nd rounder into that mix. Clearly I am no expert GM based on my fantasy hockey performance this season, but I gotta think a deal could be done here...

Bottom line, I want to see more Stars faceoff wins in the new year and the only way that will happen is if they go out and get a faceoff specialist.

Brandon Bibb:

I could have taken the easy way out and said I wished Tom Hicks would increase his budget to meet the actual salary cap.

But that would be too easy, would lack specifics, and would also be the biggest pipe dream in sports right now. So would wishing for a number 1 defenseman to step in here, stabilize the defense, and also be capable of manning the point on the power play.

Not. Happening.

So realistically, my wish is for young players like Matt Niskanen, Jamie Benn, and James Neal continue to improve and prove themselves worthy enough to be regarded as the next nucleus of the Stars as we press forward. I have no doubts that Joe Nieuwendyk and Marc Crawford will seek to make changes next offseason when the internal cap is lifted.

That having been said, in a salary cap era, it's extremely important for teams to be able to fill holes on their from within as opposed to filling them in free agency. I hate to point to the Red Wings as an example. And to a lesser degree, the Penguins. Afterall, those two franchises have clearly been the best two franchises in the NHL over the last two years. And in the west, Detroit's the gold standard.

Why?

Because they've been able to develop their core, their nucleus from within. When you're able to do that, your ROI is much higher than when you're forced to go the free agent route.

Just ask the New York Rangers.

Brandon Worley:

My wish is for the Stars to put together at least some sort of consistency from game-to-game, especially at home. The win against Detroit on Saturday was big for home town fans, and if we all want the Stars to raise their budget and spend more money, then we need better attendance for home games. We're not going to see those empty seats filled unless the fringe fans have something to cheer for, and so far this season has been frustrating. I love nothing more than to see a rocking AAC, filled with cheering Stars fans; not just on Saturdays but also on Mondays and Wednesdays as well.

Brad Gardner:

The goaltending position is a lot like the quarterback position in football: Franchises flounder for years without one you can call a "franchise guy."

Stars fans have had luck with this position over the years, never having the need to see a new guy in the net every other season, but with Marty Turco's play uneven, and the seemingly never ending well of top-notch goal tending prospects finally drying up, this franchise could be in for some real turmoil should Marty Turco be cast out of Dallas without a suitable replacement.

My Christmas wish is not that Marty Turco be re-signed, or that he play better (I do wish this), but that he quite simply go one way or the other, so to speak, such that the goaltending situation is not one that festers into the mid 2010's. That is, I don't want to see the Stars wrap a noose around their neck with an extension for him if he's not going to be consistent, but I also don't want to see him leave Dallas high and dry over money without a backup plan.

I like Marty Turco. He is a very nice man, he's a fierce competitor and he can be a good leader of his defense. He handles the puck unlike any other netminder in the league, maybe ever. All that aside, he has the unfortunate habit lately of making the hard saves and flubbing some easy ones. I'd like him to stop that. I think it would be a real shame for Turco's time to end here without at least a Final appearance.

So please, Hockey Santa Claus, help Joe Nieuwendyk guide this franchise's goaltender position into the new decade.

We don't want to be the Philadelphia Flyers post Ron Hextall.

And if you can't swing that, then please ban those stupid little mustache's like Olli Jokinen and Daniel Carcillo have. Seriously, what is that?

What's your biggest Dallas Stars Holiday wish?

Stargazing: Stars Defeat Red Wings 4-3

Brad G — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 21:18:05 -0000

Stargazing is a daily assortment of Dallas Stars and Texas Stars news, and whatever other random ramblings are bouncing around inside our heads.

After a five game road trip that ended with back to back losses and two injured defensemen, playing a hot Detroit team seemed like a real tough spot. Luckily for Stars fans, we have Karlis Skrastins on our team.

Wait, what?

Despite missing Trevor Daley and Mark Fistric to injury, the blue-liners were the key to victory Saturday at American Airlines Center. Skrastins had a three point night, and the Stars defense kept Detroit off the score sheet in the final period to actually finish off a rare 60 minute effort. Maxime Fortunus had a solid NHL debut, and helped Dallas to a victory in a game where they managed only 21 shots on Jimmy Howard. As Art mentioned yesterday, their fundamentals were much improved over the game in Atlanta.

The joy of watching all of those Red Wing "fans" leave disappointed yesterday aside, this victory was a must have over the team that is directly in front of them in the standings. With the two points in regulation, the Stars merely kept pace with Detroit and pulled a little closer to the pack. They remain in 9th place, with none other than the San Jose Sharks coming to town tomorrow night. A win over Detroit is fun, but it needs to be part of something bigger if it is to be truly meaningful.

San Jose and Los Angeles are a mere 6 points ahead of the Stars. If they could finally "put something together", the hill to climb is not all that tall. Look at what one lousy win has me saying...

After the jump, quotes and reaction to yesterday's big win...

Mike Heika was complimentary after the game...kind of...

It doesn't matter that the Wings are without some of their best players or that Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard had a less than stellar game. The key for the Stars is they did not go to overtime, they did not blow a lead in the third period, they did not stumble out of the gate and allow an opponent a huge lead.

They made the big plays when they had to make the big plays.

And that is something the Stars didn't do against Atlanta, Carolina or Los Angeles in recent games.

But there are still some serious problems in the game of this team. They still struggle to get the puck out of their own zone at times, they still make big mistakes in coverage, they still allow some not so great goals. Now, they will tell you that every team makes those mistakes, and that no team is perfect. And I get that. But it just seems these Stars make those mistakes more often than they should.

The inability to get the puck out of the zone at times was ever-present, and maddening. Winning is truly a wonderful deodorant.

For the other teams perspective, be sure to visit Winging it Motown:

On an afternoon in which the Detroit Red Wings had a 33-21 advantage in shots and a 63-33 attempts advantage on the road against the Dallas Stars, it would seem likely that they would get two points out of it.

But a series of bad defensive plays, odd bounces, and a mediocre performance by Jimmy Howard negated a pair of three-point performances by Todd Bertuzzi and Pavel Datsyuk gave the Stars the 4-3 victory Saturday afternoon.

Karlis Skrastins had two goals for the Stars, including the game-winner 1:16 into the third period.

63 attempted shots is a lot of rubber flying Marty Turco's way.

Jimmy Howard says it was just lucky bounces the Stars got...(Detroit Free Press)

Bertuzzi, on playing with Datsyuk: "On my goal, he took four guys with him and still had the patience and poise to make a play like that, so it makes it pretty simple, I just have to get into the right spots." ... Jimmy Howard, after making 17 saves: "I felt great out there. It's a funny game sometimes, this game is. The second one, it goes off Neal's shin pads. And the third one, Stuie (Brad Stuart) blocked it and I never picked it up until it was right on Neal's stick and he fired it into the net. They got a couple of lucky bounces out there."

It doesn't matter how they score goals, not even if, for example, they went off someone's face. Call it lucky if you want, I think we'll take our two points, thank you.

The Dallas Morning News had high praise for Brenden Morrow:

Of all the impressive plays Saturday in the Stars' 4-3 win over the Detroit Red Wings, Brenden Morrow's in the final minute of the game said a lot.

Morrow lay out, blocked a shot and cleared the puck on a penalty kill that pretty much sealed the game.

The reason it was so important? It's exactly the kind of play the Stars typically don't make against Detroit. It's exactly the kind of play the Stars didn't make in going 1-1-4 in their previous six games.

When Brad Richards was whistled for slashing 190 feet from the Stars' goal with 26.4 seconds left in the game, you just knew the game would be tied. In a game where nothing was being called, you knew the Stars would regret the only penalty of the third period.

But Morrow made a big play.

I think that's an excellent point. There was commitment out there yesterday.

Quotes from the locker rooms...

Marc Crawford:

"I thought the defense really stepped up tonight," Stars coach Marc Crawford said. "They recognized how much onus was on them and how much responsibility they had to have. Tonight, I thought our guys really paid attention to details. We backchecked hard, we recovered pucks real well, I thought we had an identity tonight of a team that wanted the puck and played strong defensive hockey. Yeah, there were a couple of mistakes, but there always is in a game."

"It was great to score early," Crawford said. "I thought that gave us a huge boost, you score a minute and a half into the period, it just puts so much more belief into the team. We knew that the one line you had to watch, so we felt confident, I thought the confidence got enhanced by the goal by Skrastins."

"I thought the blocked shot by Brenden Morrow was very significant, and that was kind of the effort we got tonight," Crawford said. "Guys paid the price and that sort of stuff is infectious throughout the group, people blocking shots, battling hard - those are the things that end up equaling victories."

James Neal:

"We didn’t sit back, we put the same amount of pressure on them in the third as we did in the first and second and you got to when they’re so skilled like that," Neal said. "It was a good win."

"We played just as good in Atlanta and their goalie comes up big," Neal said of the Stars’ 6-5 overtime loss on Thursday in which he didn’t register a point. "We just tried to do the same things tonight and when things are going, they’re going, and it showed when I was going to the net - I get a little bit of a bounce off the pads and right on my stick. It’s a start. We held onto the puck more, we got to do that, we’re a good line when we’re cycling and controlling the puck."

Karlis Skrastins:

"I was waiting for this for a long time," said Skrastins, who hadn’t scored a goal yet this season, his first with the Stars, entering the day. "I’ve had a couple of good opportunities the last couple of games, but the puck wasn’t going in. Tonight was one of those nights where I had a little bit of luck. I scored my first goal and then I scored the game-winning goal. It’s very exciting, but what’s important is that we won the game."

And of course, there's always Marty Turco criticism:

Marty Turco. He had some phenomenal stops but also allowed two questionable goals. That included one that came in and went through the 5-hole, though it wasn't moving very fast. Turco might have been screened before it went in. He's been inconsistent, much like the team. But he did make some saves late once the Stars got the 4-3 lead.

And finally, I was in no way responsible for this. I merely observed that there appeared to be some alterations to every urinal in the upstairs bathrooms yesterday at the AAC. Luckily there was an iPhone handy:

We at Defending Big D ~~congratulate~~ don't endorse vandalism of any kind, and we ~~did~~ didn't think this was funny at all.

Dallas Stars Winter Wonderland: Cooked Wings, Good Feelings and Turco Trade Talk

Brandon Worley — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:00:57 -0000

The scene outside Defending Big D headquarters this morning. And it's still snowing.

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It's an interesting mood Dallas sports fans are in this morning. As the holidays approach, the feeling among us all has shifted a bit from where we were just 24 hours prior. Apprehension, worry and a lingering sense of foreboding was creeping into our psyche as the feeling that the season was creeping into seriously disappointing territory grew.

Dallas Stars 4, Detroit Red Wings 3.

Dallas Cowboys 24, New Orleans Saints 17

I understand that not every Stars fan is a Cowboys fan, but for this writer the two teams live side by side in my heart. I have lived and breathed the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Stars for nearly my entire life and I find that at times my health, attitude and well-being are adversely affected by these two sports teams. Lately I've tried my best to distance my emotions from the outcomes of the games and I've been doing a pretty decent job of turning off the television after another loss and just...moving on. Business as usual. Yesterday, however, was the first time all season that I have jumped out my chair, punching the air and screaming like a banshee after a Stars goal. All while chatting on ESPN.

While the parallels between yesterday's two big wins aren't exactly on the same level of magnitude, I cannot express to you how big the victory over the Red Wings was for this team. After the jump, some thoughts not only on yesterday's game but on the near-future of the Dallas Stars, some trade talk, and further musing on the financial status of the team.

It's tough to say that the win yesterday over the Red Wings was 'season saving', but it certainly kept the Stars from falling into a fairly significant hole in the Western Conference standings. As it stands now:

#	Team	Points
5	Los Angeles Kings	47
6	Calgary Flames	44
7	Phoenix Coyotes	44
8	Detroit Red Wings	41
9	Dallas Stars	41
10	Vancouver Canucks	40

The Stars kept themselves right where they wanted to be after a severely disappointing road trip where they gained nor lost much in the standings. Yet after winning just one of their past six games, including one demoralizing effort against basement-dwelling Carolina, the Stars were in danger of falling into the abyss. Starting with Detroit, the Stars were beginning one hell of a tough stretch of games, all against Western Conference and teams and all but one against teams above them in the standings. To start with a loss would have put the Stars back in 10th place in the division and four points out of 8th; not insurmountable, but the loss could have set off one hell of a bomb. The Stars would have lost four straight and would be trying to get their act together against some of the toughest competition they've faced all season. A loss yesterday could have been the spark that effectively ended the Dallas Stars season before it was halfway over.

Now, the win doesn't absolve the Stars of future failure. They could lose four straight and find themselves down int the hole anyway. Yet the win over the Red Wings put a temporary salve of a bubbling wound and gave the Stars a reprieve from all of the questions and doubts that had started to infect every aspect of the team.

What was most enlightening about the game yesterday was how it was finally a complete 60 minute effort from the entire team. Marc Crawford didn't do anything crazy with the lines, yet the team came out with more determination and resolve than I've seen all season. Sure, we've witnessed some good starts before but that usually faded as the game wore on. Yesterday, the Stars not only responded from an early 1-0 deficit at the first intermission, but they also won the second period and evened the game up with a couple of huge goals by James Neal. The big goal by Karlis Skrastins a little over a minute into the third period set the Stars up to have one of their better defensive efforts with a lead this season. There were some tense moments, but the Stars held the Red Wings to just six shots on net and didn't allow Pavel Datsyuk to continue to skate all over them like he had done in the first 40 minutes.

Maxime Fortunus had a solid NHL debut and we saw what he's done for most of his career in the AHL; play an intelligent and physical game without being flashy. He had a couple of nifty clears of the puck from around the crease, covered his side of the net perfectly and overall didn't make many mistakes. He started off paired with Jeff Woywitka but as it became apparent that Matt Niskanen was having yet another terrible game, Crawford put him with Karlis Skrastins and the Stars suddenly had two pairs of shutdown defensemen. In fact, Fortunus finished with four more minutes of ice time than Woywitka and Niskanen, even seeing significant time on the penalty kill. He's not your average NHL rookie blueliner and he's going to be very solid for the Stars while they deal with the injuries to Mark Fistric and Trevor Daley.

The best part of this game that I took away was the Stars undying resolve to never give up; they counter-punched all game long and were able to overcome some seriously shoddy goaltending miscues. Marty Turco had one of the most schizophrenic games he's had a a Dallas Star, making several incredible "how did he do that?" saves and then turning around and allowing two of his softest goals of the season. His failed clearing attempt was laughable, yet it speaks to the confidence he has when playing the puck. Unfortunately, he swung and missed and the Red Wings had themselves an easy tap in goal.

Yet it was the horrendous attempt at a save on Pavel Datsyuk's goal that could have been the back-breaker. The Stars had just scored two goals in the second period to take a 2-1 lead and Turco allowed a goal on what could only be described as a 40mph changeup. Now, they gave the goal to Datsyuk because I'm guessing he touched it, but replays showed that Bertuzzi's off-speed pass barely changed direction if at all before slipping between Turco's pads. Now whether Turco was bracing for Datsyuk to receive the pass and make amove is unknown, but the genesis of the play was the simple fact that Turco's stick was nowhere close to being in position. Keeping the paddle square and on the ice would have been enough.

In a game like this, with the Stars playing so well and able to come back and take the lead in the second period, allowing a goal of that nature in unacceptable. I've been the biggest supporter of Marty Turco over the years and I still stand behind him, but allowing goals like that leads to lost confidence from the fans and you wonder if it affects the team at all. It seems every game one aspect of the Stars' team falls apart and lately the goaltending has been incredibly suspect after pretty much playing well all season long.

With Turco allowing a couple more soft goals yesterday, the murmurs among the fans and elsewhere started to rise again about the possibility of trading Turco. My stance on this situation is still the same as it was last week; the Stars aren't trading Marty Turco as long as they are within spitting distance of a playoff spot. The team believes that Turco is the guy for the rest of this season and despite his recent struggles he's still the best option for this team at this time. Some state that the Stars need to get value for Turco before he potentially departs via free agency, but it's impossible to say if there's even a slight chance the Stars can maintain the same level of goaltending we have now, even with their struggles. Who on the open market is as good as Turco? Which teams are willing to take on his salary and able to give up the value the Stars deserve for trading a top 10 goaltender?

More importantly, which players in the Stars system are you ready to hand over the reigns to? Do you have faith that Alex Auld can hold the fort for the rest of the season, and is there any of the Stars' prospects able to step up and take the job? If Turco leaves, whether via trade or free agency, the Stars are going to have some short-term issues at goaltender on their hands. You're not going to be able to secure the young players this team has that they desperately need to keep, you're not going to be able to acquire a big defensemen and you're not going to get a top-flight goaltender all in the same summer. Not with this team's financial situation.* Is your best option right now to lock up Turco on a two-year deal and allow him to play with either Matt Climie, Richard Bachman or Brent Krahn under him (and Climie and Krahn's contract aren't very long either) and then hand over the team to them? Tyler Beskorowany is on his way as well, but he's two to three years away from the NHL, at least.

*I understand that Stars fans are hoping that a sale of the Texas Rangers is going to suddenly free up cash, but this team won't feel any effects of the sale until next season, best scenario. Expect the Stars to operate with a budget until Tom Hicks gets everything straightened out, and there are more, longer-term, pressing needs on this team than an expensive goaltender free agent.

So now the Stars have confidence and their goal scoring back (4.0 goals-per game the past week) and are embarking on a tough stretch of games, continuing tomorrow night with San Jose. They got the easy part out of the way with a big home win over the hated Red Wings; now comes the hard part. For this team to truly get past this 35 game funk they've been in ever since the season started, they have to find a way to win multiple games in a row. San Jose comes next, and the Sharks are trying to get over their own miniature slump.

I'm expected to see and hear a raucous AAC crowd on Monday night.

I'm also expecting to do some big fist pump, air punches.

Go Stars.

Stars defeats Red Wings 4-3

joehass — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 02:30:47 -0000

More photos » by Tim Sharp - AP

Krystofer Barch and Brad May renew acquaintances for their sixth battle.

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On an afternoon in which the Detroit Red Wings had a 33-21 advantage in shots and a 63-33 attempts advantage on the road against the Dallas Stars, it would seem likely that they would get two points out of it.

But a series of bad defensive plays, odd bounces, and a mediocre performance by Jimmy Howard negated a pair of three-point performances by Todd Bertuzzi and Pavel Datsyuk gave the Stars the 4-3 victory Saturday afternoon.

Karlis Skrastins had two goals for the Stars, including the game-winner 1:16 into the third period.

The game featured the sixth battle in the epic struggle between Brad May and Krystofer Barch. Both sides got in strong punches, but the battle finished effectively as a draw. Afterwards May was seen laughing with Barch between the penalty boxes.

In the first period, Bertuzzi was driving towards the Dallas net and took a shot on Marty Turco. Turco was able to put a stick on it, but in the process of trying to push the puck out of the crease, misplayed it. As it popped into the air, Tomas Holmstrom took a swing at the puck to a wide open net, and connected to get his 13th goal of the year.

In the second, Mike Ribeiro took the puck after a dump into the corner to the left of Howard. Four Red Wings tracked towards him, which left Skrastins wide open to the right of Howard. Skrastins didn't miss for his first goal of the season, making it 1-1.

Richards skated in direct along the boards. He passed it to James Neal in front of the net. The puck went off the toe of his skate, then deflected off Bertuzzi's stick and past a moving Howard to make it 2-1 Stars.

Three minutes later, Bertuzzi came in across the blue line and the puck went lightly off Datsuyk and past a completely stunned Turco. It was Datsuyk's eighth.

Sixty-six seconds later, Skrastin's shot from 55 feet away was stick saved by Howard. But Howard lost track of the puck as it went into the air and landed on Neal's stick. He didn't even pause, putting it past a surprised Howard for his second of the afternoon to jump the Stars back out in front.

With 60 seconds left, Datsuyk skated around the back of the Stars net, draped in Skrastins. He pushed the pust towards Bertuzzi, who slapped it in past Turco for his 10th of the season and third point of the night. It was 3-3 going into the third period.

But only 76 seconds into the third, Brad Richards sends a backhand to Skrastins, who put it along the far post against an out-of-position Howard. It was the second of the game and his third point of the afternoon to get the winner.

The Wings head to Chicago Sunday to take on the Blackhawks at Madison Avenue.

Player of the game: Pavel Datsuyk. In addition to the goal and two assists, Datsuyk was completely in the zone, with crisp, heads-up passing and smart playmaking.

Skrastins The Sniper? Dallas Stars Outgun Red Wings 4-3

Art_M — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 23:20:47 -0000

More photos » by Tim Sharp - AP

The three certainties in life: death, taxes and Kris Barch / Brad May fighting whenever they play against each other. (AP Photo/Tim Sharp)

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So to start off, lets go over the list of guys who the Dallas Stars should be leaning on for offense this season and see how they did today! Brad Richards? Two assists. Mike Modano? No points but did have 8 shots on goal which led all players on either team. Loui Eriksson? Two assists in the game as well. James Neal? Two goals and an assist. Karlis Skrastins?

Woah... Wait... Who?! Karlis Skrastins? With two goals - one of them being the game winner that he scored very early in the third period - and an assist today? Uhhh... Ok, sure!

Karlis Skrastins having a three point game - a career high for him of course - seemed about as likely as seeing the Dallas Stars putting a solid sixty minutes worth of hockey against the Detroit Red Wings who came into the game having won four in a row and five of their last six, but yet both the solid sixty minutes of play and the Skrastins offensive outburst happened and your Dallas Stars won their first game in regulation time since December 3rd.

Huge win this afternoon for your Dallas Stars as they beat the Red Wings 4-3. We here at DBD have talked the last few days about how this next stretch of games over the next two weeks or so for the Stars will be a big test, so starting it off with a win over one of the club's main rivals is a great start. Also things suddenly don't seem quite as bad for the team standings wise when you consider that the Stars have earned 10 out of a possible 16 points so far this month.

But as is fitting in a season where fans on almost a nightly basis are never sure of what exactly they'll see from the Dallas Stars, today's game saw offense from maybe the most unlikely source possible: A stay-at-home defenseman who is know more for blocking shots than taking them!

Now granted the Red Wings are beat up and a hurting bunch right now with eight of their regulars out with various injuries, but they are still the Red Wings, they still had Pavel Datsyuk and Todd Bertuzzi in their lineup - the only two players who the Stars just couldn't seem to contain - and lest we forget the job goalie Jimmy Howard did against the Stars in their last meeting.

The Stars were full value for their win today. It wasn't a perfect win but it was maybe the best we've seen this team play over the last few weeks. The biggest thing - and as you might be able to tell, I can't say it enough - is that it was a complete game. There were no five minute lapses where the roof caved in on the team, or periods where 18 of 20 minutes were spent in the Stars zone, and maybe most importantly when the Stars did have a one goal lead late in the third period they didn't go into a cheesecloth-like prevent defense and allow the opposition to fire at will on Marty Turco until they got a goal to tie it.

Do I even dare suggest that the third period today almost kinda sorta looked like the Dallas Stars of old where they'd get a one goal lead and then "lock it down" defensively for a win? Ok, maybe they are still a ways away from that kind of play and heck, coach Marc Crawford may not even want the Stars to win that way... But in the third period the Stars stuck to playing strong fundamental hockey that both offensive and defensive players played all game and ended up with a W.

Playing strong fundamental hockey... Where have we heard that before? Lets hope they can keep it up against the Sharks!

Defending Big D Three Stars:

1: Karlis Skrastins (DAL) - Oh yeah, on top of his three point night he also had 2 blocked shots. A career game for him!

2: Pavel Datsyuk (DET) - Three point night and the Stars couldn't prevent him from setting up goals even when three guys surounded him.

3: James Neal (DAL) - Six hits to go along with his three point game and as an added bonus, neither of his two goals came off his visor!

Inconsistent Pattern of Punishment Frustrating to NHL Players and Fans

Brandon Bibb — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:00:21 -0000

by Tony Gutierrez - AP

David Koci and Jarkko Ruutu were able to do this week what James Neal could not. Escape the Wheel of Justice. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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Last month, James Neal became the first Dallas Stars player to fall victim to the NHL's campaign to eliminate headshots from the game, even though the league saw a few worse hits to make better examples from, but decided to take a pass.

This week, the league had two more chances to make examples out of players the same way Neal was made an example of. To nobody's surprise but to the frustration of many, they decided to pass.

It motivated my good friend, Joe Yerdon, to do a little further investigation over his excellent hockey blog, Gross Misconduct Hockey. I do suggest you check him out on a daily basis, even though he's a Red Wings fan.

Videos of the hits in question come after the jump.

First, let's look at David Koci's hit on Mike Green of the Washington Capitals.

5-0 game. Koci doesn't slow down one bit, and looks like he knows exactly what he's doing as he delivers a debilitating and illegal hit on an unsuspecting opponent.

If ever there was a clear cut case for a suspension, this is it. I mean, afterall, James Neal got two games for hitting Derek Dorsett from behind.

Not to mention, Koci has more of a checkered past, which is something the NHL takes into account EVERY TIME they review a hit.

Did Koci get suspended?

Well, we'll get to that here in a bit.

Because I have another video I want to show you. Specifically, because this hit looks a lot more like the Neal hit on Dorsett. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Jarkko Ruutu of the Ottawa Senators, hitting Buffalo's Patrick Kaleta.

Like Neal's hit on Dorsett, it wasn't really a dirty hit so much as it was a reckless hit on, once again, an unsuspecting player who had no way to defend himself. And the seamless glass in Ottawa probably played as much of a role in the injury to Kaleta as the hit, itself, did. It was, as Brad said about the Neal hit on Dorsett, a 'normal looking hockey play.'

Still, while the NHL never came out and gave a reason behind the suspension of James Neal, it was clear that the league was sending a message that headshots would not be tolerated.

Well, I guess this being a different month, that level of tolerance must have been lowered.

A pair of National Hockey League disciplinary hearings has resulted in fines, but not suspensions.

David Koci of the Colorado Avalanche has been fined for his hit on Washington Capitals defenceman Mike Green, while Ottawa Senators winger Jarkko Ruutu has been fined for his hit on Buffalo Sabres' Patrick Kaleta.

Koci, who averages 3 minutes 7 seconds of ice time per game, lined up Green and delivered a shoulder in between the neck and shoulder blade area of Green's jersey. Green did not see Koci coming and his visor smashed into the seamless glass at Pepsi Center.

Green, who had to be helped off the ice, was knocked woozy and left bleeding above his left eye.

Koci was assessed five minutes for boarding, five minutes for fighting after being engaged by Green's teammate John Erskine, and a game misconduct.

Ruutu received a game misconduct for boarding Kaleta in the opening minute of the second period of Wednesday's contest. Ruutu drove Kaleta's head into the glass and the Sabres pest needed to be helped off the ice.

For comparison sake, let me repost the video of Neal's hit on Dorsett.

Keep in mind as we go back in our DBD Time Machine that Neal's hit came after the league dropped the ball on Mike Richards' hit on David Booth and Rob Scuderi's rather ill-timed hip check that caused Jason Chimera to go awkwardly into the boards. I couldn't help but think that when Neal's suspension was handed down, it was handed down to quiet the league's critics, including Bob McKenzie, Peter Laviolette, and Mike Keenan, who hopped on their soapbox and castigated Neal's hit.

Laviolette and Keenan weren't on TSN's panel last night with Bob McKenzie. But Keith Jones and Craig MacTavish were alongside the veteran TSN journalist. And to their credit, they all said Koci and Ruutu deserved suspensions for almost the same reasons as to why TSN's panel said Neal deserved a suspension. In Koci's case, Jonesy even suggested that two games weren't enough and that he ought to have been hauled to New York for a face to face meeting with at least a 5 game suspension.

So good on them for showing some consistency.

And also laying the foundation for the next suspension to come down from the NHL. Because if we've learned anything this year, the league will seek to atone for their screwups by suspending the next poor sap who lays a headshot on an unsuspecting player.

And this vicious and frustrating cycle will continue until, as Hockey Joe puts it...

The league can’t make everyone happy here but coming up with some sort of concrete method to the madness regarding dirty play and suspensions for committing offenses like these has to come out of all this. There have been too many instances where we the fans and I’m sure the players as well are left scratching our collective heads wondering what is going through the head of Colin Campbell when he goes to his smoky back room to come up with some kind of action against offending players. Every other major sports league has some kind of step-ladder for doling out punishment for breaking the rules like this yet somehow the NHL can’t remove its head from its own ass to create their own.

Since Joe touched on the angle of what other sports leagues do, have you ever noticed how in the NFL, they don't ever fine or suspend a player based on the actions of a particular hit? They literally punish the act itself, irregardless if it results in an injury or not.

Classic examples include hits where a defended leads with the crown of his helmet. Or my favorite, the series of horse collar tackles that Roy Williams got fined for in 2007 before he horse collared Donovan McNabb of the Eagles in Week 15 and was suspended the following week at Carolina.

Sure, they also fine players for stupid crap. Pick any one of the many fines they've handed down to Chad Ochocinco this season. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if they fine him for wearing the jersey of the late Chris Henry to practice.

But I digress.

Point is, you hardly ever hear complaining about a lack of consistency in the NFL's pattern of punishment. That's because they have a level of transparency unlike any other league. Look no further than the fact they make their Director of Officiating available every week on the NFL Network to explain away controversial calls from the prior week's games.

Until the NHL adopts a similar level of transparency, this frustration from fans, players, coaches, and team officials will continue to occur.

Marty Turco and Dallas Stars Drop Sharks in Shootout, 3-2

Brandon Worley — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 06:32:54 -0000

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Of all the players on the Dallas Stars that have taken the ice this season, none have received the amount of criticism as Matt Niskanen. The young defenseman that had shown so much promise two years ago, and lately he's struggled perhaps more that any other player on the team. Yet tonight, he emerged as the unlikely hero for the Stars in the 11th round of the shootout when he lifted a hard wrist shot over Evgeni Nabokov's glove.

The game started off shaky for the Stars as they attempted to match the Sharks physically and energy wise, and opened up the scoring with a nifty tip-in by Mike Ribeiro late in a power play. Yet the Stars found themselves down 2-1 after the first period as they allowed the Sharks to establish their forecheck, and allowed yet another seemingly soft goal. It was an emotional and penalty-filled first period and for a time it seemed as if the Stars were more focused on agitation and physicality than actual execution.

Yet led by a masterful performance by Brenden Morrow and Steve Ott, the Stars mounted an inspired comeback starting in the second period. Dallas outshot the Sharks 29-18 in the second and third periods and dictated play for a large chuck of time in the second half of the game. With Marc Crawford leaning heavily on his top three lines, the Stars were able to sustain pressure keep the Sharks away from their strength: their offensive firepower. Nabokov was masterful throughout the game, challenging the shooters and rarely allowing a rebound opportunity.

Eventually it was the Stars' aggression around the net that was the difference in this game. This was a theme through the game as the Stars had attempted to create as much havoc in front of Nabokov as possible, and had led to several scrums and a number of penalties for both sides. Midway through the third, as Brad Richards skated the puck out from behind the net, James Neal established position in front of the crease. Scott Nichol and Nabokov was more worried about Neal than the puck, and all three crashed to the ice as Richards' shot found the back of the net. Fittingly, the only way the Stars could score was to basically knock the goaltender out of the way.

Yet it was Marty Turco who stole the show in the final ten minutes of regulation, in overtime and then finally in the shootout. With the Sharks mounting a counterattack with the game tied Marty came up huge for the Stars, making 16 saves with the game on the line, including several tremendous stops on the penalty kill late in the game. He also made the save of the season when he stopped a rebound opportunity by reaching behind his back with his glove to snag a shot out of the air.

The shootout was a combination of incredible goaltending and questionable scoring skills; both teams combined for just three goals in 22 opportunities. Turco used the poke check to perfection while Nabokov was confident and forcing shooters to make moves with the puck. It was frustrating to see the Stars come up empty time and time again, but Turco was tremendous as he gave his team a chance at the win. Eventually, Niskanen was able to score when he snapped a big shot over the goalie's glove.

It was a big win for a Stars team that was reeling from two painful losses in the past week, and they'll get a chance to carry over the strong play tonight against Los Angeles.

Not All Doom & Gloom for Dallas Stars

Brandon Worley — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:45:40 -0000

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The past couple of weeks have been hard for the Dallas Stars and their fans. We've seen some insanely debilitating losses and break downs during games like we've never encountered before on a game-to-game basis. This has caused an outcry of differing emotions from fans, including a near-unanimous mentality that the Stars desperately need to make a trade, any trade, in the near future to get back to the winning way's we've enjoyed.

On last night's podcast, Mike Heika reminded us that Rome was not built in a day and Stars fans should not expect instant success from Joe Nieuwendyk as he builds this team in his image. Today on his blog, Heika went into more detail:

While Bob Gainey had a lot of money at times thanks to the new ownership of Tom Hicks, he also made some really slick trades to get the ball rolling, and I think those need to serve as a model for Nieuwendyk. Gainey spun his wheels and even made some frustrating moves (Ulf Dahlen to San Jose for Doug Zmolek and Mike Lalor, Mark Tinordi to Washington for Kevin Hatcher, Neal Broten to New Jersey for Corey Millen) before he started on a streak of finding the pieces. He picked up Guy Carbonneau as a desparation move simply because Bob Bassen blew his knee out. He used Hicks' money and a darn fine prospect named Jarome Iginla to get Nieuwendyk. He took on a young defenseman named Darryl Sydor who the Los Angeles Kings had tired of watching make mistakes (it cost him Shane Churla and Zmolek). And then he pulled the trade of the decade when he sent Kevin Hatcher to Pittsburgh for Sergei Zubov.

Nobody saw the potential for how big that deal could be (maybe not even Gainey), but he was smart enough to listen to his scouts and make that deal work. And having been there, nobody knew about it and it came out of nowhere. That's what a good GM does, he finds the deal that nobody else is thinking about.

....

I know that's a lot of history, but my point in all of this is that it took Gainey from Oct. 1995 to June of 1998 to put his team together _ and he had been a part of the organization since 1990 and GM of the team since 1992. We want to think he put that team together in a couple of months, but it took a long time.

Nieuwendyk deserves that patience.

I'm certain that Stars fans will come to understand this "rebuilding" process that Nieuwendyk is going through. Yet at the same time, fans are still looking for progress and something positive to hand their hat on; a team that produces nothing by negativity is destined to fall into the abyss of failing sports franchises.

Good thing the Stars aren't one of those teams.

The Dallas Stars are still in good position in the standings.
It must seem that with all of these issues and and all of the inconsistencies and overtime and shootout losses, the Dallas Stars must be mired in the basement of the Western Conference and are facing a near impossible climb to try and get right back into the playoff hunt. In reality, the Stars are still in 8th place in conference and are just six points behind 4th place Los Angeles. If the Stars can manage to stay even as they work through this rough patch and continue to at least salvage some points from the bad games, the team will be in perfect position when things start to operate much smoother.

There is a talented group of prospects playing great hockey down in Austin.
I know this doesn't directly affect the Stars at this moment, but the fact that their AHL affiliate is not only succeeding but dominating in their first season is reason enough to feel good about the future of the team. Not only are the Stars building a stable of talented players in the AHL, but they're playing them in the same system the Stars are employing in the NHL. This allows for a smooth transition for call ups and also get's the young prospects used to the system, one in which the players are flourishing.

Two words: James Neal
The young forward burst onto the scene last season when his high-energy and goal scoring ability made him put him in the running for the Calder Trophy, but this he's season he's taken it to a completely different level. He's shown the ability to not only score from any spot on the ice (and even when he's not really trying) but he's developed a knack for creating chances for his linemates as well. This was something we didn't see last season, and the way his game is evolving has all Stars fans excited for the long-term potential he shows.

Two more words: Brad Richards
He's tailed off a bit from the torrid pace he was on (granted, he's played in 2-4 less game than others around him) but Richards is still top ten in the NHL in overall scoring. He is now playing like the offensive genius we all knew he could be, while taking on a valuable leadership position in the locker room. He's serious about the game of hockey and he's dead serious about the Dallas Stars. No one wants this team to succeed more than Richards.

The young defensemen.
No, I'm not talking about Trevor Daley and Matt Niskanen. I'm talking about the emergence of Nicklas Grossman and Mark Fistric as solid defensemen who look to be improving almost daily. Grossman is finally starting to learn how to use his size to his advantage and Fistric shows that the time he spent in the AHL last season has taught him some valuable lessons about how to play hockey in the NHL. Both players look to be on the verge of really starting to touch on the potential they showed a few seasons ago and Stars fans should be excited about the solidarity the team will have for years to come with these two on the blue line.

Joe Nieuwendyk
I know a lot of fans are frustrated by his lack of action so far this season, but he's already shown the ability to make significant moves while hampered by strict financial guidelines. The Alex Auld trade was a near work of genius, filling a gaping hole on the team while sacrificing a mid-round draft pick. Stars fans need to have faith that Nieuwendyk has the ability and drive to build this team into another champion and the good news is the pieces are already there: A dominant number one center, a talented (if raw) young defense, a stable of speedy and talented forwards....all that's missing is a long-term solution in net.

No pressure, Joe.

Ducks Win 4-3 in Yet Another Stars Overtime Loss

Art_M — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 06:32:35 -0000

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Oh you sneaky Dallas Stars... I'm on to you now! I finally figured out what your modus operandi is for this season!

You see I have it on good authority that a grade six kid in Plano last year did a school report on the possibility of an NHL team going an entire season playing nothing but overtime games and if they could make the playoffs with 82 overtime and shootout losses. The kid then forwarded his report (it got a B-minus by the way) to Marc Crawford before the start of training camp, and Crow being the ever inquisitive mind, figured "Why the hell not? I have three years on my contract, I can waste one."

Of course you Dallas Stars have kind of messed it up with the odd win in overtime and even once in a while *gasp* an odd regulation win... But you've pretty much stayed true to form and you keep losing in overtime and shootouts.

I'm on to you Stars. Oh boy, I am so on to you guys and while I tip my hat for such dedication to a cause, if you don't mind I do have a bit of advice concerning your 'plan' as you all move forward:

STOP IT!! For the love of Baby Hockey Jesus please stop this madness!!

The Stars had a 3-0 lead for nearly two full periods... and they blew it! It was like they tried to out-pathetic themselves from the Edmonton game.

"Hey... you guys think tanking a 2-0 lead was bad? Wait til ya see what we got planned for tonight!"

(The gory details after the jump...)

They had a great first period again which has been pretty much par for the course the last couple of weeks... Got goals from Brad Richards and Mike Modano... Both were beautiful plays. Richards was great out there and James Neal who was returned to the Richards line was playing well also. The defense was making nice crisp passes out of their zone. Steve Ott was banging and flying out there and even though he got stopped on yet another breakaway we Stars fans kinda laughed it off.

"Oh those Stars, always failing on breakaways and penalty shots... Ha ha..."

The Stars ended the first period up 2-0 and looking better than they had in weeks. Even their good efforts against Detroit and Edmonton couldn't match how well this first period went for Dallas. Not to mention the Ducks - who were going through a December that ranked only slightly better than Tiger Woods' December - were playing so bad that you could have sworn they reverted back to their mighty purple and teal, lets let Guy Hebert try to win this by himself days.

And then the second period hap... No... Wait... Actually the second period wasn't that bad either! At least it didn't start that bad.

Sure the Ducks came with more pressure and sure the Stars seemed to lose a step and were playing on their heels a bit more, but it wasn't that bad a period. Brad Richards added a second goal on the night to make it 3-0 after some more nice work by Neal and Loui Eriksson. And hell, if not for a couple of strong plays made by the Ducks defense, Dallas could have added a fourth or fifth goal. Near the end of that period though the Ducks started getting too much of an advantage in terms of puck possession and shots on goal. The Stars young defense - made younger by the playing of Ivan Vishnevskiy tonight - were really starting to struggle in terms of getting the puck out and the rest of the team seemed to go into snooze mode.

A snooze that you thought they should have broken out of the moment Joffrey Lupul got out of the penalty box with no Star keeping him in check and picked up a breakout pass from Ryan Getzlaf and then proceeded to drill Marty Turco into his own net with a five-hole shot that Marty did stop with his pads, but sadly slid in behind the goal line anyway under those pads along with the rest of Turco.

(We can argue all day if Turco was actually 'pushed' into that net by Lupul's stick and I'd buy the argument he was, but at that point Marty was backing up pretty quickly himself so I'm pretty sure his own momentum carried him in, push or no push.)

But still, Stars up 3-1 after two... That's not so bad. The Stars can make adjustments and come out better in the third. Only, they didn't. It got worse. Much worse.

If you were one of those fans that couldn't bother to stay up so late for the game, kudos to you for having the forsight to avoid such a train wreck that was the Stars defending a lead in the third period.

They again played not to lose. (Remember what I said about that last time kids?) Ducks played like they had nothing to lose. The Stars defense couldn't hold on to the puck in their own zone. They refused to hustle for loose pucks instead allowing Anaheim to pick up scraps in exchange for not being the guy that may be out of position. The Stars forwards weren't any better as they either stood high in the zone and hope a puck floated to them or hopelessly chased Ducks around the ice.

Honestly, I've seen dogs chase down their tails better than the Stars did pucks in that third period.

And when the Stars did manage to get the puck once in a while, it was a case of getting the puck past center, dumping it in and then having one forward kinda go after it, but not really with any gusto.

Turco was the only reason the Stars made it to overtime.. And yet somehow with the third Ducks goal, a Dan Sexton wrister from an odd angle a shot that Turco should have easily stopped, Turco was the reason it went into overtime. Not that Turco was to blame for the entire game, in fact anyone who does blame Turco for this loss clearly just didn't watch the game. The simple truth is, when your team is outshot 14-2 in the third period and 21-4 when you put together the third and overtime periods, you don't deserve a win. Turco can not be expected to stand on his head and stop the Ducks shooting gallery from getting anything past him.

(A quick little footnote here: Dan Sexton was awesome in that third period for Anaheim. He at least had the right idea. Fire pucks from every angle possible. Nine shots in a game? Wow!)

The Stars did get a point... Hard to get worked up or feel good about it though. This is a game they shouldn't have lost. Personally. that third period was some of the worst hockey I've seen from the Stars in the last twenty years of me being a dedicated follower of this franchise.

Unless you're really hoping to find out if a team can keep losing in overtime like the Stars do and still make the playoffs, as a fan this game tonight from about the second period onward should leave you feeling at least a little ill. We can only hope it does the same for the Stars themselves and lights a fire in them.

Defending Big D 3 Stars of the game

1st Star: Dan Sexton (ANA) - Two goals - first two of his NHL career, nine shots... He was all over the place and giving the Stars fits.

2nd Star: Bobby Ryan (ANA) - Had a nice, kinda quiet game... Two assists, six shots, +2... Wasn't flashy but was very solid.

3rd Star: Brad Richards (DAL) - Two goals early and was one of the few that bothered to shoot the puck on goal in the second and third periods.

Stargazing: Stars Fall to Oilers in Shootout, 3-2

Brad G — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 17:29:29 -0000

Stargazing is a daily assortment of Dallas Stars and Texas Stars news, and whatever other random ramblings are bouncing around inside our heads.

"If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always got."

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Since November 6th, the Stars have 7 wins. They also have, can you guess? That's right, 7 losses. Win one, lose one, win one, lose one. If they can expect to get "what they've always got" from doing this same thing over and over again, then I suppose 7th or 8th place in the Western Conference standings would be a pretty welcome result. Unfortunately, we all know that's probably not going to cut it. Nor should it. 6-6 CFB teams shouldn't be allowed to go to bowl games and hockey teams that can't win back to back games probably shouldn't be allowed to play playoff hockey.

Dallas now embarks on a huge Pacific road swing that will go a long way toward bolstering their position for the busy months ahead, or putting them in a hole from which they'll attempt a desperate escape. The Kings, the Sharks, the Thrashers...These teams are playing great hockey. They'll see the Ducks again, who will likely want those two fluke goals back, and the Hurricanes, who had an impressive showing against the Canucks yesterday. It's a tough five game swing.

As for the game yesterday, there are a lot of excuses to throw out there. Afternoon games are tough, sure, but both teams had to be up at the same time. For my money, the Stars played 20 minutes of hockey yesterday and got one point for their trouble. That's not a bad exchange rate. The biggest positive I take into the road trip is Marty Turco. He bounced back nicely from a shaky outing at The Joe and looked great against the Ducks and the Oil. Barring a hitherto unforeseen offensive explosion, they'll need him to be strong if they are to have a successful road trip.

After the jump, quotes and reaction from yesterday afternoon's game...

NHL.com brings you Mike Ribeiro:

Dallas is 4-0-2 in its last six games at home, but the Stars bemoaned the loss of an extra point on Saturday.

"It was 2-0 and then 2-1 with 3 minutes left," Ribeiro said. "I think we should have been able to close it out. When you don't have the lead and you come back and tie the game and lose in the shootout, you're like, 'OK, we got the point.' But when you have the lead and then lose in the shootout, it's a little bit harder."

That they were only three minutes away from a win after playing a game that poorly is a positive. Everyone has off-nights, and the Stars gave themselves a chance to win on an off night. They just couldn't seal the deal.

The prayer Ladislav Smid threw at the net late in the third was the one that lost Dallas that extra point:

It was only a matter of time before Ladislav Smid got one.

But who knew it would be almost two full years?

He sure didn't.

"It's been 151 games?" he asked incredulously. "Wow. It's a great feeling, especially since it helped the team to come back and win."

If you're going to break a slump that dates back to April 2007, you might as well make it count, and Smid's tying goal with 3:07 left in regulation yesterday was one of the biggest markers of the season, helping lift Edmonton to 2-0 on this road trip.

Richard Durrett [ESPN] bemoans yet another shootout loss:

Once again, the Stars couldn't win in a shootout. They are now 1-6 in shootouts this season. And Saturday's was particularly disappointing in that they were up 2-0 and blew the lead, falling to Edmonton, 3-2.

Coach Marc Crawford went with Brad Richards, James Neal and Loui Eriksson. Then, when it shifted to sudden death, he put Mike Ribeiro and Brenden Morrow out there.

I can't fault the selections. I might have been tempted to put Ribeiro in that first three, but he has struggled like everyone else lately in shootouts.

The team works on these things in practice. I don't know what else they can do to improve it.

Like it or not, the shootout is part of the game. The shootout will help decide which teams go to the playoffs and which teams stay home. The Stars have now lost 6 points to the shootout, and will likely participate in 6 or 7 more at least. If the Stars miss the playoffs, IF... It's likely they won't miss them by more than 2-7 points or so, one would think, and the shootout will have an angry finger pointed it's way come seasons end.

Mike Heika thinks teams might be focusing on a weakness in the Stars' game...

But, they did not extend the lead in the second or third periods and they seemed to really battle to get things done. Marc Crawford said he thought the team had an especially hard time moving the puck out of the back end, and that was in part because the Oilers sensed problems and really pushed the forecheck hard.

Will other teams follow suit and continue to put extra pressure on this team's young defensemen? And what do you do to rectify that short of making a trade?

Quotes from Dallasstars.com:

Marc Crawford:

"The shootout foiled us again tonight," Stars coach Marc Crawford said. "We got in a position to get a win and Brenden’s shot was a good one, hit the post. And they found a way to squeeze it through Marty, Horcoff. We hope (shootouts) will turn into the right thing. This was a game that probably falls more in the category of we shouldn’t have ever let it get to a shootout."

Mike Modano:

"There have been some missed opportunities," acknowledged center Mike Modano. "Then again, there’s some games that we don’t even belong in that we sneak out some points. It all over the course of a year evens itself out. You look back at what you could have got, but then you have to look back at what you had no business getting them out of anyway. But these shootouts have been a little snag in our game the last couple years."

James Neal:

"Maybe it’s in our head a little bit, but we got to bear down in the shootout," said winger James Neal, who scored a goal in the game but shot wide on his shootout attempt. "We put emphasis on it in practice, too. It’s tough, so many points are lost, especially with the amount of shootouts we’ve been in. We don’t want to let those one points slip away from you. Guys got to be confident, you’ve got to go in knowing you’re going to score."

Robidas on the penalty:

Dallas then had to kill off one of the strangest penalties of the season, when Stephane Robidas was called for ‘interference’ for sliding Turco’s goalie stick towards him from the left corner while the Oilers were entering the zone on a rush.

"I don’t know, he said I can’t throw the stick," Robidas said of the referee. "But that’s the thing, I didn’t throw the stick, I just brought it to Marty, but he said no. I couldn’t really argue with him, he’s got the final call."

Judging from the reaction at Copper and Blue, Smid's goal yesterday was the equivalent of Karlis Skrastins or Krys Barch coming up with a big goal late in a game:

It was Ladislav Smid who did it, too, so I was worried at first. "Goddammit," I said, "I'm hallucinating." I immediately drank more coffee, but the distressing visions are still there: that tall drink of water wearing number 5 celebrating like he'd just done the impossible, which I suppose he had. I should have caught on when Ryan Stone picked up a goal or when Jean-Francois Jacques and Patrick O'Sullivan got a two-on-one and didn't completely muff it: the ordinary rules of hockey didn't apply today. Something about playing while the sun was still high had turned us into the Bizzaro Oilers, capable of looking like a proper NHL team for entire shifts at a stretch.

So you know what? Forget what I said a few paragraphs up. Day games for the rest of the season! I want to watch the sunrise and then watch the Oilers! I want to see Dustin Penner slogging to the rink at four in the morning still in his bathrobe! I want the post-game spreads to be bacon and eggs! We might finally be able to grasp a prize worthier than the "Participant" ribbon which has characterized the 2009-10 season.

The "insanity" of trying the same thing over and over again continues on Tuesday night in Anaheim with what we can only assume will be a win. 9:00pm start time. Don't forget the Red Bull.