SB Nation - Loui Eriksson

Game 38 Preview: Jackets limp into Dallas

Mike MacLean — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 17:05:00 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

Dear Santa, all I want for Christmas is a god damned win! The Jackets are in the midst of the worst tail-spin of any NHL squad right now. Remember when they were at or near the top of the Western Conference standings? Now they are battling with Edmonton and Anaheim to stay out of the conference cellar.

Based on the Dispatch's projected lineups, it looks like the roster is is set up like we all predicted it would look like back in the summer. Vermy and Brass are the scoring line pivots, with Juice, Nasher, RJ and Jake as the scoring wings. Chimmer is checking with Sammy and Freddy, which makes a hell of a lot more sense than having Juice on that line. The fourth line will bring energy and physical play, no doubt. I'm pulling for Blunden to score that first goal, and i think if Boller and Raffi can create havoc and the guys can work the forecheck as well as they have of late, it could happen. Mase gets the start. I hope he took Hitch's comment about he and Garon being equal on the depth chart personally and re-affirms himself as the clear-cut number one.

The Stars are a good team- they can score and they bang bodies. The James Neal subplot is an interesting one, it will be fun to see how he is treated by the Jackets. I'm sure that given the chance he and Boller will chuck knuckles tonight. Brad Richards seems to have returned to his former high-scoring self, so he will need to be contained. Their defense is missing some pieces, but are serviceable. I remember watching Fortunus and Vishnevskiy when they were playing in the QMJHL, they are both good players and while they aren't household names yet, they have the potential to forge decent NHL careers, especially Vishnevskiy, a former first round pick. He's a natural Zubov replacement. Turco is in net for Dallas.

Fearless Prediction : A decent effort, the Jackets want to go into the break on a high note, so they can start fresh after Christmas. Mike Blunden gets a point.

Game Time: 8:30pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Defending Big D

Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Stars Coverage

TV: FSN Ohio

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

From the Columbus Dispatch:

It's hard to imagine a more fragile club in the NHL right now than the Blue Jackets. Getting out of the first period without trailing would be huge. The Blue Jackets are 5-1-1 in Dallas the past three seasons. If the Jackets lose tonight and Edmonton wins in Minnesota, they fall to last place in the Western Conference.

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Kristian Huselius	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
R.J. Umberger	Derick Brassard	Jakub Voracek
Jason Chimera	Samuel Pahlsson	Fredrik Modin
Raffi Torres	Mike Blunden	Jared Boll

Fedor Tyutin	Mathieu Roy
Mike Commodore	Jan Hejda
Kris Russell	Marc Methot

Steve Mason

Mathieu Garon

EXTRA: Andrew Murray

INJURED: Anton Stralman, Rostislav Klesla, Derek Dorsett

Dallas Stars

James Neal	Brad Richards	Loui Eriksson
Brenden Morrow	Tom Wandell	Jamie Benn
Steve Ott	Mike Ribeiro	Fabian Brunnstrom
Toby Petersen	Mike Modano	Krys Barch

Nicklas Grossman	Stephane Robidas
Karlis Skrastins	Maxime Fortunus
Jeff Woywitka	Ivan Vishnevskiy

Marty Turco

Alex Auld

Nabokov Repels 36 of 38 Shots as Stars Suffer 2nd Regulation Home Loss in December

Brandon Bibb — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 05:24:57 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

Browse more photos »

The position of goaltender in hockey is one that I can simultaneously respect and yet, loathe.

I respect Evgeni Nabokov as one of the game's top goaltenders. I respected him for the stops he was able to make when his defense allowed prime scoring chances to the Stars throughout the first and second periods.

And when he made those stops, I loathed him. To the point of wondering on Twitter whether or not he had sold his soul just to drive the Dallas Stars nuts.

38 shots came his way tonight and 36 were repelled. The only two that beat him were off a rebound he couldn't quite control 18 seconds into the third that Jamie Benn potted home to cut a 2-0 second intermission deficit to 2-1, and a deflected point shot off Loui Eriksson's skate.

So as a result, the San Jose Sharks skated off the American Airlines Center ice in much the same fashion they've grown a little too accustomed to in the last three years.

Winners.

4 in a row in Dallas and at least their 6th win in their last 8 trips.

But unlike most of those wins, the Stars can take some positives out of this one. I'll look at a few after the jump. As well as some other negatives.

For starters, Dallas did jump on San Jose to the tune of 38 shots. They did, admittedly, get some help in the form of 5 power plays to none.

But from where I sit, this marks two games against the Sharks where the Stars have had the territorial edge and been able to apply the hallmark of a Marc Crawford coached team.

Puck possession in the offensive zone with a lot of shots and quality scoring chances. That, I certainly liked. Every forward but one had at least one shot tonight.

But just as the ball don't lie in basketball, the puck don't lie in hockey. When you generate that many shots and scoring chances, you've got to bury them. And in the first, the Stars had plenty with nothing to show for it.

Perhaps if they had been able to jump on the Sharks early and forced them to chase the game instead of the other way around, we're talking about an honest to goodness winning streak. The kind the Stars really have yet to enjoy this year.

Instead, Nabokov was able to repel all the shots he had seen through 40 minutes and the Sharks converted on goals from Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski to take a 2-0 lead into the dressing room after two. Unlike in their first meeting, the Stars just weren't able to find enough in the tank to come back tonight.

And while I'm on this Negative Nancy kick, that lone forward who didn't record a shot?

Fabian Brunnstrom.

We've made mention of Matt Niskanen's struggles and even contemplated the idea of either sending him down to the minors or trading him for fear he's hit a wall here. We do that, I think, because we've seen what Nisky's capable of in his previous two years in the NHL and believe that he can still progress as a solid NHL blue liner (I'll still have more thoughts on him later).

Sadly, I can't really say the same thing about Brunnstrom right now. When he puts out a performance like he did tonight and only sees 6:31 of ice time (only Krys Barch saw less ice time tonight), I can't say I'm surprised anymore.

Getting back to the fountain of positivity, I was very impressed with the play of Maxime Fortunus tonight. A lot of time, you'll see a young defenseman in the NHL allow panic to set into his game when the pressure gets turned up a notch.

I saw none of that tonight. Just strong steady play at both ends of the ice. The Stars were able to sustain pressure because he was positionally sound and made smart plays with the puck. If the shot wasn't there, he made sure it got back down deep so the forwards could outwork the San Jose D to continue to create scoring chances.

And when he got caught out on the ice for almost two minutes? Again, he didn't panic. Typically you worry about mental mistakes in those situations. But he stayed mentally sound throughout this shift, didn't get caught running around and expending more unnecessary injury.

And towards the end of his shift when he gained control of the puck on his own side of the red line, he was cognizant of the fact he couldn't ice the puck. Otherwise, of course, his two minute shift would have gotten a little longer. Instead, he found a forward to get the puck to who could fire it deep. And off to the bench Fortunus went.

On my drive home tonight, I heard one caller on the Dallas Stars Postgame Show on The Ticket suggest that Fortunus and Vish were brought up to put pressure on Robidas, Skrastins, and Grossman. I have no doubts that Niewuy and Crawford want these two young guys to put pressure on some current members of the Stars D corps.

But it's not the three the caller mentioned. Robidas is safe because he's generating more points offensively than even Jay Bouwmeester. Grossman's been solid for much of this first half of the season, and Skrastins has been doing exactly what he was brought here to do. Play solid stay at home defense and block shots.

No, these callups were meant to put Matt Niskanen on the hot seat. Again, this kid's got some talent and great potential. But he's got to show it now because there's a number of defensemen down in Cedar Park that are just itching to take that spot away from him on a full time basis.

Oh, and about that Ivan Vishnevskiy mishap with losing the puck right into his own net?

Nothing you can do but laugh about it. And seek to atone for that mistake on Wednesday night.

And on an unrelated note, do consider the cause(s) that The Chief is promoting over at A2Y. if you have a little extra cash laying around that wasn't spent on holiday shopping and you don't mind helping out a hockey fan from as far away as Brazil get to see our great game live in person.

Even if it'll be at a Red Wings game at JLA.

Whatever doesn't get spent will be donated to the Red Wings Wish Club with proceeds going to the Children's Hospital of Michigan.

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)

Browse more photos »

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!

Ducks Win 4-3 in Yet Another Stars Overtime Loss

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

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

Browse more photos »

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.

Stars Lose Yet Again in Shootout Against Oilers

Art_M — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 22:42:27 -0000

More photos » by Ralph Lauer - AP

Browse more photos »

Afternoon games weren't exactly kind to the Dallas Stars last season as they went 1 and 4. This season's stretch of afternoon games didn't start much better as the Stars dropped a 3-2 shootout loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

The problem with afternoon contests most times - and this is true for almost any level of hockey, not just today's game or the NHL in general - is the players take a little bit longer to get into a groove and actually playing the game at their usual level. (And based on the bad officiating both ways for both teams, we can throw refs into that group as well.) Generally a key to winning these games is to be the first team to find your legs and get a jump on the scoreboard. Which is what the Stars ended up doing about ten minutes into the first as they started applying pressure low in the Oilers zone and cycling the puck well.

Their hard work was soon rewarded at the 15:51 mark as Mike Ribeiro got the puck from behind the Edmonton net, danced around dour different Oilers and then fired a shot from the slot that was saved by Oiler goalie Jeff Deslauriers but Jamie Benn was right in front of the net untouched to bang in a rebound that pretty much landed square on his stick for the 1-0 lead. Also of note, Brenden Morrow extended his points streak to seven games with a point on that play with an assist.

Less than four minutes later James Neal made it 2-0 after a nice pass from his landlord Brad Richards and suddenly it looked like the Stars were going to have a very good Saturday afternoon.

Then the second period happened. Again.

Maybe what we're seeing here is a weakness of a Crawford coach team... Opposing team's make adjustments and the Stars fail to make adjustments or respond to the change in game's pace. Even worse today, the Stars let their typical sub-par play in the second period carry over to the third period where they seemed to play not to lose as opposed to playing to win.

Funny thing about playing not to lose... I've rarely seen a hockey team that plays like that actually not lose. More often than not playing not to lose will end up in a loss. It's like putting on a prevent defense in football with eight minutes left in the game when you're only up by six.

After outshooting the Oilers 18-10 in the first, the Stars were outshot 26-17 in the rest of the game. That's not to say that the Stars didn't have any chances to score after the first, but it is an indication of how much the Oilers stepped up their game compared to Dallas.

With no real sustained pressure from the Stars, the Oilers crawled back into the game. First with a goal from Lubomir Visnovsky that looked like it could have bounced off two players but upon further review didn't hit anyone and for as strange as it sounds, the lack of a deflection may have thrown Marty Turco off as he played the shot expecting a bounce or two.

The Oilers kept chipping away at the Stars defense (which for the most part was ok in the game) and Turco (who was outstanding) and with about three minutes left in the game finally got the game tied at two after a Ladislav Smid point shot went off Stephane Robidas' leg and past a surprised Turco who clearly wasn't playing for a deflection at that time.

That isn't a typo by the way... Laddy Smid... A member and president of the "I haven't scored since 2007" club not only had a goal but he also had an assist on the first Oilers goal. Maybe we shouldn't be stunned that the Stars did end up losing because honestly any team that allows Smid to have a two point night deserves not only a loss but also for Southwest Airlines to actually charge them to carry their bags on the next flight.

Cue overtime where the theme of the Stars not doing much offensively continued and Marty kept the Oilers at bay with some solid stops in the extra frame.

In the shootout it seemed to be more of the same that you've seen from the Stars... And not in a good way.

Richards comes in with speed and takes a wrist shot... only to be stopped.

Neal (who was by far the best Star on the ice today despite what I am about to say) is maybe taking after his mentor a little too much as he pretty much tried the same thing as Richards did and missed the net.

Loui Eriksson thankfully broke up the shooting party with a nice forehand / backhand deke to tie to extend the shootout... which ended two rounds later when Morrow clanged a shot off the post while the Oilers Shawn Horcoff fired a puck five hole on Turco that barely squeaked through his pads to win the game.

Yet another frustrating result to what after the first was a frustrating game for Stars fans... And I am sure for players and coaches alike. The Stars offense is as cold as the snow that has been in falling around Texas the last few days and special teams wise the powerplay is pretty much non-existent right now to go along with the anemic offense. At the very least the penalty kill efforts for the Stars have been quite good, but this team's defense isn't quite good enough to win these 2-1 games constantly which is what has been asked off them far too many times this past month.

Again there are positives to take way from this game. Neal is starting to return to his crashing, shooting form. Mark Fistric maybe had his best game of the season defensively. Jamie Benn is firing at will now and still crashing the net. Turco was great and the reason the game even got to an overtime and a shootout

Most of all, even though I know Stars fans are very sick of the one point losses and the shootout failures, at the very least the Stars are gaining points with these losses and not being left in the dust by not collecting loser points.

Defending Big D 3 Stars of the game

1st Star: Jeff Deslauriers (EDM) - Gave his team a chance to get back into the game with some great saves in the first that continued for the entire game.

2nd Star: Marty Turco (DAL) - Did everything possible to try and win a tight 2-1 game. His work in the third especially helped the Stars get to overtime.

3rd Star: James Neal (DAL) - By far the best player on the ice for either team. A goal and seven shots on net plus a handful of hits.

Stargazing: Stars Defeat Lightning 4-3 in OT

Brad G — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 19:57:10 -0000

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

The Lightning and Stars entered the game on Saturday night tied for the league lead in overtime losses. Loui Eriksson and Tom Wandell made sure the Lightning alone can boast of that on Sunday as the Stars narrowly avoided what would have been a pretty gut wrenching loss.

Dallas played their seventh game in eleven nights, going 4-2-1 in that stretch. When you look at the numbers like that, it sounds good. 4-2-1 is a .643 points percentage, and a nice looking stretch of hockey on paper. When you look a little closer you can see that they could have very easily could have finished that stretch with three straight losses. They needed a last second goal to send the Blues game to OT. They got embarrassed in Phoenix, and they needed to kill a penalty in the final two minutes of the Lightning game last night. We give them credit for pulling as many points out of those games as they did, but remain concerned with the perpetual inconsistency.

The Stars will make their last trip to Detroit on Monday to play the Red Wings. After that, four of the next five are against divisional opponents, and that's an area where Dallas needs to improve. They've already lost two to the Kings and two to the Coyotes. December is a great opportunity to improve those numbers and further bury the Ducks, who they play twice in the next two weeks.

After the jump, lots of quotes and reaction to last night's big OT win...

Wandell recounts the OT action:

"Loui came in 2-on-2 and I know he's a reallly smart player so I was just looking to get open," said Wandell after his first career overtime goal and third winner this season. "It wasn't the best shot, but it went in. It was a big win. We came back strong."

The Stars didn't want to go to the shootout, having compiled a 1-5 record in the tiebreaker this season.

"Had we not gutted it out and got that overtime goal, it would have been pretty disappointing," Stars captain Brenden Morrow said.

Smith agreed that it probably wasn't the best shot:

"I was there and I thought he was shooting high but he got it under my pad," Smith said of the game-winner. "I think he missed on it a little and didn't get all of it."

Personally, I don't care what kind of shot it was. 2 points is 2 points.

Speaking of Smith, it was good to see Smitty back at the AAC. We were all sad to see him go. The Tampa Tribune talked to Mike about his return...

Mike Smith swears he never circled Saturday's game on his calendar when the schedule came out during the summer. He knew at some point he would make his way back to Dallas to face his former team.

But that didn't mean he wasn't excited to get between the pipes and face the Stars in his first return trip to face the organization he spent honing his craft with during the first five years of his career.

"It's exciting to be back, it's great. I had a couple of good years here in Dallas, met a lot of good people and I can't say enough about the organization," Smith said.

"I have a lot of great memories with the players on this team and some great friendships that will never be lost.

"I wish I would have beat them."

The Tribune also spent some time with Brad Richards:

"This is the best start I've obviously had personally," Richards said. "It's been good to get some confidence going right from Day One. I don't think when I first got here that they really understood me nor did I clearly understand what they wanted, and that's normal. They had a really good team when I got traded here, they were used to playing and doing things a certain way. It took awhile for me to fit in."

He said heading into Saturday wasn't quite as strange facing his former team in Dallas as was his first return to Tampa back in January.

"It will always be different going into that building, and (Saturday) will be fun," Richards said, "but this doesn't have the same feeling as going into the Forum and playing in front of your old fans and playing on the ice surface you won a Stanley Cup on."

Richards is currently second in the NHL in assists behind only Joe Thornton, who is cheating because he plays with Dany Heatley.

Dallasstars.com brings you Marc Crawford's post game comments:

"The two points is crucial," coach Marc Crawford said. "When we ended up killing that penalty off with two minutes to go, getting into overtime, our guys breathed a big sigh of relief. I liked our chances going into overtime. We got our couple of opportunities in overtime and scored on the second one. It’s huge, we get the two points. They’re not always going to be masterpieces. Tonight I thought we did a lot more things correctly than not."

"It was a bad third goal there that went in on us," Crawford said. "It happens. You have to persevere and battle through it. Alex made a couple of really good saves on the penalty kill."

"I thought we did a pretty good job all night. We drew a lot of penalties," Crawford said. "I thought their goalie, Mike Smith, was pretty good in the early part of the game. While it was his mistake that gave us the 5-on-3 and allowed us to get our first goal, he was a pretty important guy for them early in the game. I thought we generated quite a few chances. We did the things we wanted to, and really we weren’t giving up very much against them."

Brad Richards:

"We had a four-minute power play, and we want to try to put our foot down and have a killer instinct, right through our team, and figure out a way to make it 4-1," Richards said. "It seemed like we just kind of let our foot off and let them back in the game."

I thought our very own Brandon Worley had the best nugget from the game last night on faceoffs:

Faceoffs. Every game we talk about them. Against the Lightning, the Stars went into the third period winning 70% of the faceoffs and were absolutely dominating in the circle. Yet at the end of the game they had won just 48%, right near their season average. In a third period where the game nearly became a complete disaster, it's not hard to see where the breakdowns started.

Ribeiro lost 13 of the 20 faceoffs he took. Steve Ott took 4 draws and won 3 of them.

Mark Stepneski's thoughts:

That was a strange game.

I thought the Stars power play was great, scoring three times to continue it’s nice recent run and then it fizzles on a 3:49 chance to put the game away, letting Tampa Bay hang around the game.

I thought Alex Auld was outstanding until he lets in two in 47 seconds, letting Tampa tie the game. The Stamkos power play shot was a beauty but the Halpern goal to tie it was just a bad goal.

I thought the Stars’ discipline and ability to stay out the box was impressive and there they are killing a power play in the final two minutes with the game tied. They dodged that bullet.

I have a hard time coming away from that one and saying that Auld was outstanding... Aside from the obviously atrocious Halpern score, I thought he was perhaps a little deep in his crease for that first goal. I haven't had a chance to check a replay on that one. He was certainly solid enough as backups go, and it will be interesting to see who starts at The Joe on Monday.

It's probably tacky to complain about the officiating when your team had two 5-on-3's. So I'll just limit my commentary to one word: Really? (Particularly the Grossman penalty)

These busy Saturday's in the league are real standings shufflers. The following Western conference teams gained at least one point last night: Dallas, Los Angeles, Chicago, Calgary, Columbus, Detroit, St. Louis, Minnesota, Colorado, Vancouver, and Nashville. 11 teams in the West gained points last night. I don't think 95 points is going to do it this year if this keeps up.

The Stars are seven points from 1st place and seven points from 14th.

Insert debate about the "loser point" here.

Dallas Stars 2010 Olympic Hockey Preview

Art_M — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 16:00:14 -0000

More photos » by Ross D. Franklin - AP

It's very possible that come February these two could be on opposing teams and it's also very possible that it's Modano - not Morrow - wearing a C for his team.

Browse more photos »

The Olympic games in Vancouver are 75 days away but most national teams for the much anticipated hockey tournament will be announcing their rosters around the January 1st mark and with that in mind, all the various hockey blogs of SBNation are taking a look at their own rosters and previewing who should be making plans for a trip to Vancouver to those who maybe can expect a couple of weeks off in February.

Today is our turn as we take a look at the Dallas Stars lineup.

Pack Your Bags!

Loui Eriksson (Sweden) - It could be in a third or even in a second line role depending on how the likes of Kristian Huselius and Daniel Sedin play the next month or so, but make no mistake that Loui - who is on pace for another 30 goal season this year - will be joining the defending gold medalists from Turin, Italy.

Karlis Skrastins (Latvia) - This is kind of a no-brainier considering how thin Latvia is in all positions. Still, as we've seen so far this season Karlis is a very steady defenseman who also doubles as a puck magnet when opposing players take shots. He's going to be on the team's top pairing, so unfortunately for Stars fans, we can expect him to have a few more bruises on his body after Vancouver.

We look at more players after the jump...

Nearly A Lock...

Brenden Morrow (Canada) - Before his knee injury last season and coming off his magnificent playoff run on 08, pretty much every hockey expert had Morrow as a lock to make Team Canada's checking line. Now coming off that injury not everyone is so sure and his recent goal-less drought has also had some people question his status. Still, Morrow is a prototypical Canadian player... hard nosed, gritty and still skilled enough to score goals. Unless he goes through another long goal-less stretch, he should be wearing a red maple leaf come Olympic time.

A Safe Bet...

Mike Modano (USA) - Sure the injury and his age are working against him, but since he's made his return he's played like a man on a mission with three goals and four assists in 11 games. It also helps that both US GM Brian Burke and head coach Ron Wilson are fans of Mike and have both suggested his leadership would be a welcome addition to the team. With that in mind, don't be shocked if Mike not only makes the team, but is the one wearing the captain's C when they hit the ice.

Jere Lehtinen (Finland) - It was hard to say if Jere should have been here or in the "Work To Do" section we'll feature in a moment... Jere not being a part of Team Finland almost seems crazy, but he's been injury prone the last couple of seasons and since his return this season he hasn't put up any numbers of note and is actually a -2 as I write this. Still, Finland on wing isn't as deep as other teams and his leadership and dedication to Finnish hockey should land him a roster spot.

In A Battle...

Stephane Robidas (Canada) - If he was from any other country (save for Sweden as we'll talk about in a moment...) he'd probably be a lock, but sadly he's from Canada where the country could ice three teams for the tournament and all three would contend for gold. His offensive numbers both five on five and on the powerplay and his hard nosed play (pardon the pun) have justified Hockey Canada's choice to have him as part of the September orientation camp, but with so much big name talent in front of him, Robi will have to play near flawless hockey from here until the end of the year to get a shot at making the team.

Nicklas Grossman (Sweden) - Grossman faces the same problem Robidas does, Sweden is pretty deep on defense and while Grossman has had a solid year defensively, the lack of any kind of offensive numbers may hurt his chances overall. If Sweden though is interested in having a defensive corps of large stay-at-home defenders that can hit , Grossman may just get the call.

You Have Work To Do!

Marty Turco (Canada) - The Carolina Hurricanes Cam Ward may have been a lock for Team Canada before his injury and Steve Mason of the Blue Jackets also had some early buzz going for him, but he's struggled so far this year. Turco has been a loyal Team Canada soldier for years and his puck playing ability does make Team Canada management salivate at the idea of constant breakout passes. Problem is Martin Brodeur is a near lock as starter and unless they really stumble, Roberto Luongo and Marc-Andre Fleury are pretty much penned in as his backups, so Turco needs to continue to improve and stay as far away from games like he just had against Phoenix last night.

Moving On Up!

Brad Richards (Canada) - Five years ago coming off a Conn Smythe Trophy winning playoff, Richards would have been a lock to make any kind of Team Canada, but as you may be well aware his stock has dropped considerably. This season though his play making ability has caught the eye of more than a few Canadians and while Canada is very, very deep at center, if Brad keeps up his MVP like play for the Stars, he will make it very hard for Team Canada officials to look away.

James Neal (Canada) - If Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dustin Penner of the Edmonton Oilers are causing many Canadians to take a second look, then you can throw James Neal into that group as well as his offensive numbers are comparable to the two not to mention Neal brings a physical side that Stamkos lacks and speed that Penner lacks. Maybe in four years if NHLers are part of the 2014 games, The Real Deal is a lock for Team Canada, but for now it's a long shot.

Tom Wandell (Sweden) - Speaking of long shots, that brings us to Tommy who is a very long shot to make Tre Kronor. Still, Wandell has shown a slight nose for the net and more importantly has shown he can play a solid two-way game and has been on the ice many times for Marc Crawford in critical situations at the end of the game where the Stars lead by one and need a defensive stop. Sweden has too much depth at forward for Wandell to crack the lineup, but he's still managed to catch some eyes this season.

Headed On Down...

Matt Niskanen (USA) - Last year coming off a solid second season, Matt was part of the US National team for the 2009 World Championships and was pretty good for them in the nine games he played with the team and many thought he had a solid chance at making the Olympics. Since then though he wasn't invited to the US orientation camp and this season has been a rough one for the young Nisky. Team USA will probably decide to pass on a player who is starting to look more and more like a defensive liability this year.

Alex Auld and Dallas Stars Stun Red Wings 3-1

Brandon Worley — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:13:07 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Osorio - AP

Browse more photos »

The Detroit Red Wings have finally lost a home game in regulation, thanks to a nearly perfect road victory by the Dallas Stars. They outshot the Red Wings, were perfect on the penalty kill and took advantage of their power play opportunities to stun Detroit and get right back on the right track after days of questions surrounding the team's approach and consistency. Alex Auld was tremendous in net, and the Stars defensemen played disciplined hockey in their own zone as they worked to slow down a powerful Red Wings offense.

Obviously a lot of the attention from this game is going to be on the goal that wasn't, but we'll get into that later. In the meantime, be impressed by a great coaching job by Marc Crawford and a complete effort by the team as a whole as they did what many didn't think possible after the ups and downs of the past few weeks: beat a red hot Red Wings team on the road.

Mike Ribeiro put the Stars on the board first, when his pass intended for Ott bounced off the stick of a Red Wings defensemen and past goaltender Jimmy Howard. The power play goal put the Stars up 1-0 and seemingly stunned the Red Wings and the home crowd, who looked a bit lost in the fist 15 minutes of the game.The Stars survived a last-period surge by the Red Wings, and then received a great chance to test their penalty kill unit in the second period. The Stars successfully killed off four power play opportunities for the Red Wings in the middle frame, continuing a trend where that unit has signficantly improved upon the struggles from early in the season.

Matt Niskanen put the Stars up 2-0 with a big shot from the point past a Loui Eriksson screen. Henrik Zetterberg then put the Wings right back into the game and within one goal, when he powered past Brad Richards and to the net before lifting a shot over Auld's shoulder. The Wings seized momentum yet Auld stood tall in net and easily had his best game of the season for the Stars.

Loui Eriksson then put the game away late in the third period when he tapped in a James Neal pass on the power play. The Red Wings outshot the Stars 12-7 in the third period, but Auld and an excellent Stars backcheck fanned any fire Detroit tried to start.

Overall, a great win for the Stars and one they should be proud of. But the big test comes tomorrow night when they try to get that elusive winning streak going.

More breakdown of the game after the jump.

Game Highlights:

As I mentioned above, this was easily Alex Auld's best game as a Dallas Star, but that's also tied into how the players in front of him performed as well. Gone were the defensive breakdowns we've seen along the boards, gone were the uncontrolled rebounds in front of the net and the multiple chances for the opposition to hack away at Auld. The Red Wings did put some heavy pressure on in the third period, but for the Stars to allow 30 shots with a minimum of rebound opportunities is tremendous.
This was certainly the Stars' best coached game of the season. Marc Crawford and his assistants put together the perfect gameplan to play to the Stars' strengths and combat the offensive firepower of the Red Wings. Using a rare 2-2-1 technique (rare for the Stars at least) in the neutral zone in the first period, the Stars never allowed the Wings to get any momentum in transition and the strong backchecking by Stars forwards kept the Wings from establishing any sustained pressure. Some quick counterpunches and a power play goal later and the Stars are well on their way to a solid road victory.
This week we called out Steve Ott, Trevor Daley and Brenden Morrow as players that needed to seriously step up, but it was Loui Eriksson and Tom Wandell that truly sparked the Stars in the win. Eriksson contributed the back breaking goal, but it was his outstanding work on defense that was the difference in the game. Wandell also provided a thorn in the side of the Red Wings, as he consistently provided a strong back check as well as strong play on the penalty kill.
I was interested to see how the Stars would respond to Crawford breaking up the lines from what they've typically been the past two seasons or so, but the Stars showed a balanced team tonight both offensively and defensively. Brenden Morrow and Mike Modano worked great together, and Mike Ribeiro looked close to his old self playing with Lehtinen and Steve Ott. Brad Richards was his usual self with two more assists, and James Neal quietly had two assists as well (although his pass to Eriksson on the power play goal was a beauty.) And Mike Modano is on fire.
Finally, we come to the goal that wasn't. I can honestly tell you that the goal should have counted, even though it was against the Stars. The Puck was clearly over the goal line and was over instantly; there was no rolling over the pads on this one. The refs said that the goal didn't count because the the whistle had blown the play dead, which doesn't make sense on two levels. First, the puck crossed the goalline INSTANTLY; Auld barely had time to react to the shot. Second, the replay clearly shows that the whistle didn't blow until about three seconds after the puck went over the line. So if the refs lose sight of the puck that's fine; but that is what the guys in Toronto are for, supposedly.

Here's the video:

DBD's Three Stars of the Game:

Alex Auld, Dallas: Stopped 30 of 31, including several incredible saves in tight against some great players in Datsyuk and Zetterberg.

Brad Richards, Dallas: Two assists in a relatively quiet game, but it's uncanny how he easily springs teammates for prime chances with a subtle pass.

Jimmy Howard, Detroit: Like Auld, Howard made some tremendous saves and kept his team close when the Stars put the pressure on.

Stargazing: Searching For Answers After Another Frustrating Loss

Brandon Worley — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 23:20:10 -0000

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

The Stars as a team keep rolling their eyes when we bring up lack of consistency, but this is getting old.

This statement by Mike Heika perfectly sums up every fan's feelings about the Dallas Stars. How many times in the past few weeks have we written about how the Stars need to grab momentum from a win and somehow find a way to play consistent from game to game? Each game the Stars come out and fail to build upon the good things they had done the previous game; whether it's the travel, the injuries, the lack of chemistry among the lines, it's frustrating to watch. What's even more frustrating is how the coaches and players continue to deny there's a consistency issue, and claim that cohesiveness is just around the corner.

Saying that the Stars are putting forth a poor effort and lack energy is far from the whole story. A lack of execution on defense, a lack of an ability to establish a consistent forecheck, the defense's inability to get the puck out of the zone and into transition, and incredibly poor coverage in front of the net have all contributed to the win one, lose one pattern the Stars have endured so far this season.

Over the next few days, we're going to dive headfirst into each aspect of the Stars game and try to determine exactly what needs to change. Is the lack of true #1 defensemen what's really holding the team back? How is the lack of production from Mike Ribeiro and Brenden Morrow crippling the Stars' offense? What is exactly is the ideal line combination the Stars need to use? We'll examine these issues this week leading up a to a big game in Detroit on Wednesday night.

Today in Stargazing: Mike Heika is trying to determine exactly why it's always something different each night, Marc Crawford wasn't happy with ice conditions and Dave Tippett feels pretty good about the win last night against his former team.

Some more thoughts from Mike Heika:

It's something different every night. And typically, whatever the problem is gets fixed the next game, so it's not a problem anymore.

Maybe that's just the way of the NHL this season. If you look at the West, there are four teams between spots 7-10 and their last five games look like this: Columbus (5-3-2), Phoenix (5-5-0), Dallas (4-3-3) and Vancouver (5-5-0). It is a league of parity, and every game seems up for grabs every night.

How can the Stars find a way to get that extra edge? Maybe they will sort that out in their two days in Phoenix.

Because I honestly don't have an answer for you.

Mark Stepneski says that while the Stars are struggling, at least they're in every game and not getting blown out.

Throw in the 6-5 shootout loss to Florida back on October 30 and the Stars 2-3-2 in their last seven games. Of those seven games, six have been decided by one goal (only the 4-2 loss to Nashville wasn't) and four have been settled in either overtime or the shootout. So they are in games and usually it's a breakdown in one area or another that is doing them in these games where they come up short. But I think scoring a two goals a game isn't helping things. The chances are there but the finish hasn't.

Marc Crawford:

"You have to put points in the bank, and that's what we're trying to do. In the end, you have to look and say we didn't play well enough to get a win here. We didn't win the battles in front of the net and we didn't win the battles of the faceoffs tonight. We didn't have our best tonight. That happens sometimes."

Stephane Robidas:

"We gave them too much room. They skate and they can make plays, and they pass the puck real well.

On the penalty that led to the penalty shot: "That was totally my fault," Robidas said. "I was sleeping on that play and was a little too wide and gave him the middle a little too much."

Brad Richards:

"If you get five chances, you want to score five times, so we're not happy with it. Sometimes, you do a lot of things right and you just don't score. We weren't able to score, so we have to be able to do more."

Marty Turco:

"It is tough to build momentum. Things seem to happen a lot easier when you get on a roll. You don't feel like you're grinding it out. Some guys can get on a roll and carry a team. It hasn't been the case."

Dave Tippett is proud of the win:

"You'd be lying to say it wasn't," Tippett said when asked if the victory was special. "I was there for a long time and it's not just coaching, it's friendships. I want to beat them. I've moved on hockey-wise and they've moved on. There are still a lot of great people over there. I liken it to when brothers play against each other. When the puck drops, you play and which ever side your on you're trying to win."

"Desperation, compete level and everything we talk about was right there," said Tippett. "I thought there were a couple of calls that were questionable, but I liked the way our guys dug in. We battled through it. That's a good hockey team over there. Like I said before, they've got some high end forwards that can make things tough on you. I thought our guys battled right to the end, goaltender included."

The Stars did score on the power play last night, but they failed to take advantage of some big opportunities at key points in the game. Coyotes goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov wasn't even tested, really.

"I didn't face a shot (on the final power play)," said goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov who made 26 saves. "The guys blocked everything, tremendous PK. They played so bravely, blocking everything, sliding in to the slot hard, just everywhere, competed hard."

Marc Crawford wasn't happy about the ice conditions last night:

". . . The same for both teams, but that ice was absolutely god-awful," he said. "And when it's a visiting coach arguing about it - I know home teams don't like to do it to their own building - but that was embarrassing, and it doesn't make for good power plays.

"Hopefully, now that they got their money here in Phoenix, they can do something about the ice here . . . It was like playing in Lambeau Field."

Finally, some notes from from last night's game, courtesy of DallasStars.com:

--Left wing Fabian Brunnstrom missed his second game because of an upper body injury.

--Center Brian Sutherby also missed the game because of a groin injury. Defenseman Mark Fistric moved up to the wing on a line with center Toby Petersen and right wing Krystofer Barch.

--Modano has a goal and assist in each of his last two games.

--Turco has stopped the last 13 penalty shots against him.

--Center Brad Richards was held without a point for the second straight game after an eight-game points string.

--Left wing Loui Eriksson extended his points streak to five games with an assist on Niskanen's goal.

--Turco lost for only the first time in regulation in his last seven starts (5-1-1).

--The Coyotes defeated Dallas for the fourth straight time.

--Dallas went 1-for-6 on the power play, while they killed off all three Phoenix man advantage opportunities.

Stargazing: Stars Gear Up for Tough Road Test

Brad G — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:30:34 -0000

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

The Stars' four day break is coming to a close, and a trio of stout road tests starts tomorrow night in San Jose with the Sharks. This was the Dallas' longest break between games this year, not counting the Olympic break of course. They have only two more breaks of at least three days remaining, one of which is next week before the team travels to Detroit. After that, the remainder of the season will come at a dizzying pace.

Dallas has used the time to become relatively healthy. Mike Modano and Jere Lehtinen both returned to the lineup for three consecutive games, and strange and wonderful as it sounds, both remain healthy a week later. James Neal has returned to practice as has Krys Barch. Brad Richards and his nagging soreness surely benefit from the break as well. The health of the team, tenuous as it is, is a welcome improvement over the woes of last winter.

Turning our attention to the Sharks: They've just won their 10th game in their last 12 tries. They have once again, as we knew they would, risen authoritatively to the top of the division. Last year on November 11th, the Sharks were 14 points ahead of the Stars. This year, they're 8 points ahead and the Stars have two games in hand. Dallas will see Phoenix on Saturday night, and then will likely to stop back home for a day or two before continuing their "road trip" in Detroit on Wednesday.

After the jump: More on Brett Hull's HOF induction; Lines for tomorrow's game; Is Steve Ott getting suspended again? A new Stars injury? And more Stars news and notes...

Steve Ott has another city in an uproar, and the Star Tribune updates the possibility of punishment:

With Petr Sykora recovering at home from a concussion, Wild coach Todd Richards said Tuesday he doesn't expect NHL officials to discipline Dallas center Steve Ott for the hit that blasted Sykora's head into the glass Saturday. But dangerous shots to the head -- and the serious injuries they cause -- will be discussed by the league's general managers as they conclude their fall meetings in Toronto today.

...

Wild GM Chuck Fletcher said he didn't consider it a dirty play.

"It's part of hockey," he said. "You never want to have anyone get injured, but some things are unavoidable in a contact sport."

And yesterday, they reported that lack of video may spare Ott:

Richards does not anticipate the NHL will discipline Steve Ott for his hit on Petr Sykora. He said the hit was not easily seen on the video, which would hamper NHL officials' ability to review it. As for Sykora, Richards said he is feeling better, and the fact that he is coming around quickly is a good sign. "It's not a lingering thing where he's kind of in limbo, so that's positive,'' Richards said.

I suppose that's why I haven't seen it again anywhere. It's hard to comment on, so we'll cross our fingers that Ott is more careful in the future so he can stay on the ice, and move on.

Fabian Brunnstrom is listed as day to day with a shoulder injury sustained in practice this week. Mike Heika reports the lines from Wednesday's practice as the following:

Here were the lines Crawford went with today, and they appear to be the lines he will use against the Sharks.

Neal-Richards-Eriksson
Morrow-Ribeiro-Benn
Petersen-Modano-Lehtinen
Ott-Wandell-Barch

Grossman-Robidas
Skrastins-Niskanen
Fistric-Daley

Turco

It appears Brian Sutherby and Jeff Woywitka will be your healthy scratches.

So Sutherby sits, and Ott will play 4th line minutes. It just goes to show you how dramatically things can change for a player based on the health of the team. Everyone must be prepared to do their part and play where they must.

Richard Durrett has some nice comments from Mike Modano regarding Hull's induction, and possibility of his own inclusion someday:

"It was good," Modano said. "It was short and sweet, about an hour. They are only allowed four or five minutes to talk. It was a bit of a zoo. Everybody has a lot of friends and family. We were there to show our support."

Modano admitted that he couldn't help but think about what it might be like to be inducted one day himself.

"That would be a fitting end to anybody's career," Modano said. "You don't think about that when you start playing. You're not thinking whether you're Hall of Fame caliber. You play because it's fun and you have a good time, but to culminate in that would be pretty awesome. I can only imagine how humbling it is or how fortunate it would be to be recognized."

Personally, I'd like to see Mike pile a couple dozen more goals on before we start thinking about things like.

The USA Today reports that the Blues will honor Brett in St. Louis on December 15th:

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Blues plan a ceremony on Dec. 15 to honor Brett Hull's induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Hull will be honored prior to a game involving his first two teams, Calgary and St. Louis. Plans for the ceremony were announced Tuesday.

Hull began his career with the Flames in 1986 and came to St. Louis in a trade in 1988. He scored a career-high 86 goals and was the league MVP in 1990-91, and followed that with two more 70-plus goal seasons. All told, he had 741 goals and 650 assists in 19 NHL seasons.

Hull was inducted into the Hall of Fame Monday.

The Stars don't play that night. I guess you can borrow him.

Mike Heika says the opposition has started targeting James Neal, seeking to were him down with physical play and desirable defensive match-ups:

"You're out there playing against big, tough guys, and it's a challenge every night, and you have to be ready for it. I think if you're confident in what you're doing, you'll be fine."

Neal is confident, but does he have to adjust his game to survive the physical abuse? Some targeted players have worn down over time. Some find a way to deftly avoid hits. Others move out of the danger zone and become less effective.

"I think he can give it pretty well, and he's used to that type of game, so I don't see him changing," Richards said. "If he wants to play a different type of game and not go to the net, then he probably wouldn't have his nine goals. Unfortunately for your body sometimes, that's just the way it goes."

While I'd like to see James take good care of himself, I think that like Brenden Morrow, he's not going to back down.

Dallasstars.com has notes on practice, and the four day break:

With four days off between games, the Stars have been making the most of their practices.

"We don’t get a lot of practice time, so this is a great practice block for us," says Head Coach Marc Crawford. "We let the guys know right away that it was going to be hard for these two days and it was. I really appreciated their effort and their intensity. It’s tough to stay intense for the amount of time that you practice. If you’re only doing it for a short amount of time it’s a little bit easier. But here, we’re over an hour each day, an hour 15 yesterday and hour and five or 10 today. All hard drills, all really action packed and all lots of intensity lots of physical plays. You run the risk that you do get a bump and a bruise. We got one, but we got a couple of guys back and otherwise we got through it pretty positively."

The Stars get ESPN props, albeit in a Fantasy Hockey context, but it's flattering all the same:

...Take the Dallas Stars for example. The Stars finished 20th in the league last season for scoring, were a collective minus-63 and were coming into this season with essentially all the same puzzle pieces except for their blue-line offensive catalyst who bolted for Russia (Sergei Zubov). Most folks expected things to turn around a bit for the Stars if they were blessed with a healthy Brenden Morrow and Brad Richards, but to be tied for fifth in the league in scoring at this point was not expected. The Stars have four players on pace to top 30 goals after having only one score more than 24 last season.

Loui Eriksson and Richards are the two biggest risers this week as I have to tip my hat to coach Marc Crawford and the Stars. Crawford is letting his players attack the net and relying on the burgeoning stalwarts on the blue line to handle things in their own end.