star-telegram.com: Stars/NHL

Old hat: Wings dominate Dallas Stars

Tue, 13 May 2008 06:45 CDT

By TRACEY MYERS

DALLAS -- It's information that's hardly newsflash-worthy, something the Dallas Stars know all too well: To beat the Detroit Red Wings, you better be darned close to perfect.

The Stars were shooting for that early in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals on Monday. But, when mistakes started to creep into the Stars' play, the Red Wings were all too happy to turn them into goals -- and an overwhelming 3-0 series lead.

Pavel Datsyuk tallied a hat trick and linemate Henrik Zetterberg added a shorthanded goal and two assists as the Wings beat the Stars 5-2 at American Airlines Center.

"We had some breakdowns here and there that you can't afford against these guys," Stars center Mike Modano said. "You're pretty much expected to play a mistake-free game, and everybody has to be at such a high level."

The Stars were playing well early, outshooting the Red Wings 5-0 in the opening minutes. They were driving, they were hitting and they were looking for their first lead in this series.

And yet they still found themselves down 1-0 when a turnover turned into Datsyuk's first goal.

The Stars answered 6 minutes later, when Modano -- playing with Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro -- found a wide-open Nicklas Grossman on the other side of the ice for the tying goal.

But, 37 seconds later, Datsyuk scored goal No. 2.

"You feel like you've got a lot of momentum going your way, then the next shift we gave it right back," Stars coach Dave Tippett said. "And those are demoralizing things."

And despite Brad Richards' tying goal early in the second period, it would get worse for the Stars. A bad defensemen's change cleared the way for a breakaway by Jiri Hudler, whose backhand put the Wings up 3-2.

Then there was the crusher. The Stars went on a power play, but another turnover was gobbled up by Zetterberg. He put a quick move on Richards, then bested Turco.

"That's stuff we have to clean up," said Stars defenseman Stephane Robidas, who was on the ice for three of Detroit's goals. "We can't let them get any chances.

"They're a good enough team that they're going to create them on their own. We can't give them freebies."

The Stars are facing the ultimate deficit, the one that has them on the brink of elimination.

They say they've played their best when faced with adversity.

They also need to play that just-about-perfect game. The Wings have shown the Stars what happens when they don't.

"You give them opportunities like we did they are going to make you pay for them," Stars captain Brenden Morrow said. "Are they beatable? Yeah.

"Do we have to play better than we are? Absolutely."

Red Wings 5, Stars 2 Red Wings lead series 3-0Game 4: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Versus

Power outage The Stars have managed one goal in 15 power-play chances in the three games. They were 0-for-6 on Monday and allowed a short-handed goal. Detroit has four goals on 15 chances with the man-advantage.

Jim Reeves: A miracle would be the Stars winning a game

Tue, 13 May 2008 06:45 CDT

By JIM REEVES

DALLAS -- Does the NHL have a mercy rule? Can we apply it now, please?

Show a little compassion, guys. Let our gritty little Dallas Stars limp off to the golf course right now, before somebody really gets hurt.

If you listened closely enough at the AAC last night, you could practically hear the ice beginning to melt.

The long, hot Texas summer is rapidly descending upon us, just not fast enough to spare the poor Stars one final indignity.

They still have to show up for Game 4 in less than 48 hours.

Whatever mojo the Stars had hoped to find by returning to home ice never materialized Monday night, and the Detroit Red Wings blistered their favorite whipping boy again in a 5-2 rout to a take a three-games-to-none lead in the Western Conference Finals.

Call off the dogs; this one's over, and everyone south of the Bering Sea and north of The Falklands knows it.

The Stars simply can't beat these guys, and I say that having been an eyewitness to such incredible sports surprises as Kirk Gibson's famous World Series home run and the ball bouncing through Bill Buckner's legs at Shea Stadium.

The Stars winning four straight from these Red Wings? Even Vegas oddsmakers, who have no hearts at all, have to be taking that one off the boards.

There will be no Miracle on Ice in this series. There's no hint of a Buster Douglas here, waiting to come storming out of his corner to floor Mike Tyson.

"These guys aren't Anaheim and San Jose," Stars center Mike Modano said. "Tons of skill. World-class players."

He's right. This is simply a mismatch from a talent standpoint.

Even worse, there's The Curse.

You know what I'm talking about. The Stars see Red Wings jerseys, and their insides turn to jelly. Their eyes cross. Their sticks turn into over-cooked spaghetti.

Marty Turco turns into a sieve. Even his holes grow holes when the Red Wings show up.

There's a reason Turco has won only twice in 20 career games against the Wings. They're good, and they're living in his head.

The one thing the Stars simply couldn't afford in this series was for Turco to be average, and he wasn't even that Monday night. He was spectacular against both Anaheim and San Jose, and that's what he had to be for the Stars to have a chance against the Red Wings.

Instead, Turco has played just as poorly as the team in front of him. It was a given that he would have to steal at least one game for the Stars to have a chance. He hasn't even come close to being larcenous.

"We're 0-3. I don't feel like I've given our guys the best chance to win," Turco said. "I just have to start stopping pucks and turn things around.

"This is going to be the biggest test of character we've had all year. It's going to come down to each guy doing their part. For me, it's making whatever saves necessary, the easy ones, hard ones or the ones I'm not supposed to [make]."

Morrow hit hard by the painful 'flu'

Tue, 13 May 2008 07:03 CDT

By JENNIFER FLOYD ENGEL

Get a little OxyContin flowing. Dallas Stars captain Brenden Morrow has "the flu."

You know that flu, that rare NHL strain which presents you with sprained ligaments and concussed symptoms and an occasional broken bone.

"It's the flu," Morrow insisted when pressed for specifics about his gruesome-looking fall in the third period.

If so, Morrow has a nasty case. Because his flu-like symptoms spread to his wrist, a wrist that had been bent in a way that God had not intended after a mis-check led to him falling to the ice awkwardly. And he looked even worse as he skated to the bench and walked into the locker room.

Nobody expected him to return, to this game and possibly this series, which is exactly what he did anyway three minutes later. His broken wrist-like symptoms prevented him from gripping his stick tightly or hoisting himself over the boards, but he delivered a couple of hits and tried to help.

"When I first left the ice, I wasn't sure how bad it was," Morrow said. "But I could move it, and it didn't hurt too bad."

Too bad, as in hockey player too bad? Or too bad, as in average Joe too bad?

Because, for most of us mere mortals, yours truly included, anything beyond paper cut and a bruise qualifies as a pretty bad hurt. But Morrow is officially the toughest you-know-what to ever play for the Stars.

"His mind-set is 'If I can walk and I can move, I can still help,' " Stars forward Toby Petersen said. "You can still be effective with one arm."

Or the flu.

You see, "the flu" has a long and colorful history in NHL playoff lore as a catchall ailment when teams lie, which inevitably they do, about injuries in the playoffs. Former Oilers forward Todd Marchant once famously noted that "Derian Hatcher gave me the flu."

I hear Nyquil helps.

Gutsy? Or stupid?

Imagine if "The Redheaded Genius" decided to make say Sam Hurd, instead of T.O., Tony Romo's primary target just before the NFC Championship game.

Or if Rick Carlisle opted to jack with his starting rotation just before the playoffs began.

This is approximately what your Dallas Stars have done by completely jerry-rigging every single one of their defensive pairs after losing Game 1 of the West Finals, quietly and quite deftly, I might add.

Before Game 2, assistant coach Rick Wilson's defensive pairs were:

Nicklas Grossman-Stephane Robidas, Trevor Daley-Mark Fistric, Sergei Zubov-Matty Norstrom with Matt Niskanen rotating in or healthy scratching.

Now, we have Grossman-Zubov (who hooked up for a goal Monday), Norstrom-Niskanen (a throwback to Round 1) and Robidas-Daley with Fistric being scratched.

In fairness to whoever had final say on this, the Stars D pairs had been in flux long before they tinkered -- with Philippe Boucher coming in after injury, then out with another injury. Same for Sergei Zubov, only in reverse.

Power play not an advantage for Stars

Tue, 13 May 2008 07:00 CDT

By TRACEY MYERS

DALLAS -- The Dallas Stars' power play had been pretty efficient in these playoffs. That, like so many other aspects of their game, hasn't been nearly as effective against Detroit.

And on Monday night, the Wings were the ones benefitting from the Stars' advantage the most.

The Stars went 0-for-6 on the power play Monday, with the Wings getting a shorthanded goal on one of them in Detroit's 5-2 victory. The Stars' best opportunity came in the first period, when Stephane Robidas' shot hit the crossbar. Otherwise, the Stars weren't mustering much; they had five shots on the six power plays.

"We had a great power play there [early], but we had some unfortunate bounces," Mike Modano said. "Then it just tailed off from there."

Henrik Zetterberg then scored a shorthanded goal on the Stars' fifth power play early in the third period.

The power play continues to sputter for the Stars, as they're now 1-for-15 with the advantage against the Red Wings.

Modano OK

Mike Modano was hit by Kris Draper along the boards and left the game in the waning minutes of the second period. He did return in the third period, however, and said he felt all right afterward.

"I just got the bell rung," he said. "But it went away after a while."

Modano lay in the corner for a few seconds after the hit, then slowly got up and immediately went to the locker room. Coach Dave Tippett said Modano will be re-evaluated today.

"He got a bump on the head there, so we'll see where he is," Tippett said. "He came back in the third, so I don't see it being a problem."

Brief debut

Chris Conner played in his first postseason game with the Stars, albeit briefly. He started on the Stars' checking line with fellow Livonia, Mich., native Mike Modano and Brad Winchester, but that line didn't see much action. Conner logged 4:17 of ice time.

Briefly

Defenseman Nicklas Grossman's goal was the first of his postseason career.

Brad Richards' goal snapped a three-game scoreless streak for the center. Loui Eriksson's assist on the goal was his first point in six games.

Jere Lehtinen was out for Game 3 with the leg injury he sustained in Game 2 on Saturday night. Stu Barnes (concussion) was also out.

STRIKE 3?

Since moving to Dallas, the Stars have lost all three times they have trailed 3-0 in playoff series:

Year	Rd	Opp.	Res.
1995	CQ	Detroit	L 4-1
2001	CS	St. Louis	L 4-0
2006	CQ	Colorado	L 4-1

CQ-conf. quarterfinals; CS-conf. semifinals

Dynamic duo has been thorn in Stars' side

Tue, 13 May 2008 06:48 CDT

By MILENKO MARTINOVICH

DALLAS -- The adjectives to describe the play of Detroit forwards Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are becoming scarce.

The duo combined for six points as the Red Wings defeated the Dallas Stars 5-2 in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final on Monday at American Airlines Center.

"We've got guys that are skating so hard both ways," Detroit center Kris Draper said. "When you have the Zetterberg line doing what they're doing, you just go out and do your thing and let those guys get on the ice as much as possible. They're playing unbelievable. They're playing so responsible. They're playing all different situations.

"That's what makes those guys so dangerous. They're great in their own end and dynamic in the offensive zone. You can't say enough about those guys."

Datsyuk finished fourth (97 points) and Zetterberg finished sixth (92) in scoring in the regular season. They've continued their stellar play in the playoffs, combining for 35 points.

But what separates Datsyuk and Zetterberg from the rest is their commitment to defense. Their back-checking has been so integral to Detroit's success defensively. And often those efforts lead to offensive opportunities.

"Datsyuk and Zetterberg were absolutely phenomenal," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. "They're good players and good players play when it counts."

Datsyuk had scored only two goals in Detroit's previous eight playoff games, but had seven assists. On Monday, Datsyuk was the finisher, scoring three times. He scored his first two goals less than seven minutes apart in the first period then capped the hat trick with a pretty flip past Stars goalie Marty Turco late in the third period.

"His lowest level is real high," Zetterberg said of Datsyuk. "He plays real good for us night in and night out. You can really trust him because he will play good offense and good defense."

Zetterberg had the goal of the night and, by no coincidence, it was a result of good defense. Zetterberg picked up a loose puck in Detroit's zone while killing a penalty and skated unfettered into Dallas' zone. He deked Turco and scored short-handed for a 4-2 lead early in the third.

No extracurricular play

Despite tension entering Game 3 after the spat between Detroit goalie Chris Osgood and Dallas forward Mike Ribeiro, there were few skirmishes on the ice between the teams.

The Red Wings made it a point not to get involved in foolish scuffles that could lead to penalties.

"We've got guys who are going to take runs at you and they've got guys who are going to take runs at you," Detroit's Darren McCarty said. "We both know that. That's part of the game. We both played the game hard. We don't try to get involved in extracurricular stuff because it doesn't benefit us. I don't think there was much of it tonight."

A record run

The Red Wings set a franchise record for consecutive victories in a playoff season with nine. Detroit won eight straight postseason games in 1952 and 1995.

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

Tue, 13 May 2008 04:39 CDT

First period

Scoring

1. Detroit, Datsyuk (Zetterberg, Rafalski), 9:27

2. Dallas, Grossman (Modano, Morrow), 15:13

3. Detroit, Datsyuk (Holmstrom, Rafalski), 15:50

Penalties

Detroit: Kronwall (hooking), 1:33; Hudler (hooking), 7:59; Maltby (interference), 20:00

Dallas: Niskanen (holding), 7:37; Hagman (roughing), 16:14

Highlights: Detroit's Pavel Datsyuk scored twice in a span of 6 minutes, 23 seconds. Both goals were generated by Detroit's excellent transition as the Red Wings forced turnovers and converted them into goals. Dallas' Nicklas Grossman scored his first goal of the playoffs on a great, cross-ice feed from Mike Modano.

By the numbers

	Wings	Stars
Shots on goal	7	7
Penalties-min.	3-6	2-4
Power plays	0-2	0-2

Second period

Scoring

4. Dallas, Richards (Eriksson, Lundqvist), 3:47

5. Detroit, Hudler (Kronwall, McCarty), 11:54

Penalties

Detroit: Samuelsson (cross-checking), 12:31

Dallas: None

Highlights: Dallas tied the score at 2-2 when Brad Richards' odd-angle shot deflected off Detroit defenseman Brad Stuart and past goalie Chris Osgood. Detroit reclaimed the lead when Niklas Kronwall made a gorgeous outlet pass to a wide-open Jiri Hudler, who scored on a breakaway.

By the numbers

	Wings	Stars
Shots on goal	7	7
Penalties-min.	1-2	0-0
Power plays	0-0	0-2

Third period

Slideshow: Dallas Stars lose Game 3 to the Red Wings

Mon, 12 May 2008 21:51 CDT

Dallas Stars face elimination after 5-2 loss

Mon, 12 May 2008 23:06 CDT

By TRACEY MYERS

DALLAS — It’s information that’s hardly newsflash-worthy, something the Dallas Stars know all too well: To beat the Detroit Red Wings, you better be darned close to perfect.

The Stars were shooting for that early in Game 3 of their Western Conference Final series on Monday night. But when mistakes started to creep in for the Stars, the Red Wings were all too happy to turn them into goals — and an overwhelming series lead.

Pavel Datsyuk tallied a hat trick and linemate Henrik Zetterberg added a shorthanded goal and two assists as the Wings beat the Stars 5-2 at the American Airlines Center. The Wings took a commanding 3-0 lead over the Stars, whose mistakes were once again turned into Detroit goals.

“We had some breakdowns here and there that you can’t afford against these guys,” Mike Modano said. “You’re pretty much expected to play a mistake-free game and everybody has to be at such a high level.”

The Stars were playing better early, when they were outshooting the Red Wings 5-0 in the opening minutes. They were driving, they were hitting and they were looking for their first lead in this series.

And yet they still ended up down 1-0 when a turnover turned into Pavel Datsyuk’s first goal. The Stars answered six minutes later, when Mike Modano — playing for some time with Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro — found a wide-open Nicklas Grossman on the other side of the ice for the tying goal. But just 37 seconds later, Datsyuk was nullifying that with goal No. 2.

“You feel like you’ve got a lot of momentum going your way, then the next shift we gave it right back,” coach Dave Tippett said. “And those are demoralizing things.”

And despite Brad Richards’ tying goal early in the second period, it would get worse for the Stars. A bad defensemen’s change cleared the way for a wide-open Jiri Hudler, whose backhand put the Wings up 3-2.

Then there was the crusher. The Stars went on the power play, but another turnover was gobbled up by Zetterberg. He skated, he put a quick move on Richards, then bested Turco for a debilitating short-handed goal.

“That’s stuff we have to clean up,” said defenseman Stephane Robidas, who was on the ice for three of Detroit’s goals. “We can’t let them get any chances. They’re a good enough team that they’re going to create them on their own. We can’t give them freebees.”

The Stars are facing the ultimate deficit, the one that has them on the brink of elimination. They say they’ve played their best with the adversity on their side. They also need to play that just-about-perfect game. The Wings have shown the Stars what happens when they don’t.

“You give them opportunities like we did they are going to make you pay for them,” captain Brenden Morrow said. “Are they beatable? Yeah. Do we have to play better than we are? Absolutely.”

Ribeiro will play with Dallas Stars facing tough road

Mon, 12 May 2008 06:53 CDT

By TRACEY MYERS

FRISCO -- The NHL has spoken, without publicly speaking. There will be no suspension for Dallas Stars center Mike Ribeiro, who slashed Detroit Red Wings goaltender Chris Osgood in the chest after taking the butt of Osgood's stick to his face Saturday night.

The brouhaha is done, for now. And for the Stars, that's fine. Because considering their position in this Western Conference Finals series, the Stars have enough concerns.

As the Stars pencil in Ribeiro for tonight's Game 3 at American Airlines Center, they also move on to a more pressing matter: figuring out a way, or ways, to beat the Red Wings.

Sure, they got closer in Game 2 on Saturday, a 2-1 Red Wings victory in which chances were there but not grabbed. But down 0-2, the Stars know they have to be much better in every aspect.

"Our [emotion] has to be heightened," coach Dave Tippett said. "I thought we took a step forward in getting ourselves back into the competitive issues of the series last game, but it will still have to go up another step."

And they have to win, too. And win in every category, especially the final score.

The Stars will get a few advantages by being back at home. They will have the last line changes. They'll also come in second into faceoffs, an area that has been truly dismal for them the last two games.

"On our off side, there are a lot of tie-ups, and we're not winning enough of those. And that's partly center, partly the wingers coming in their own zone defense," center Brad Richards said. "We've got to be on the same page and win those team battles."

Emotions are sure to remain high throughout the series. But the Stars will have to walk that line of keeping the intensity up and flare-ups down.

"[The Red Wings are] not a very physical team by any means, but they do play the game. And for us to try to get into some street fight isn't going to work," Mike Modano said. "You have to play the game of hockey, and right now, they're doing it better than us."

So the Stars will try again tonight. They might be without some forwards -- Stu Barnes is out with concussion-like symptoms and Jere Lehtinen suffered a leg injury Saturday and is a game-time decision -- but this isn't a time for worrying about losses. The Stars' backs aren't against the wall, but they're nearing it quickly. A 3-0 deficit wouldn't bode well for a comeback.

"I thought we had much better jump, and our legs looked like they were back to normal a little bit. Now we need some more execution," Tippett said. "We had some good opportunities, but we didn't capitalize on them. We talked about this: It is a fine line we're walking here."

THIRD DIMENSION

With a crucial Game 3 looming tonight, here's how the Stars have fared in Game 3s the past five seasons:

L2008 First round: After taking a 2-0 series lead, Stars lose 4-2 to Ducks but win series in six games.

W2008 Conference semis: Stars beat Sharks 2-1 in overtime for a 3-0 series lead and win in six games.

L2007 First round: Stars lose to Canucks 2-1 in overtime after tying series 1-1 and lose series in seven.

L2006 First round: A 4-3 loss to Avalanche puts Stars in 3-0 series hole as they fall in five games.

W2004 First round: Stars beat Avalanche 4-3 after falling behind 2-0 in series but lose in five games.

L2003 First round: Stars lose 3-2 to Oilers, who take 2-1 series lead. Stars win in six.

Jim Reeves: A wing and a prayer or whistling in the dark?

Mon, 12 May 2008 06:50 CDT

By JIM REEVES

It was my granddad who taught me how to whistle when I was knee-high to a tumbleweed more than half a century ago, but it was my grandmother, the former school principal, who advised me when that talent would best come in handy.

You whistle, she told her wide-eyed grandson, when you're walking past the graveyard at midnight. Whistle the loudest, she said, when you're most afraid.

My ears tell me that there was a whole lot of whistling going on Saturday night in the Dallas Stars' postgame locker room in Detroit.

Not that I blame them. If I were them, I'd be whistling, too.

The graveyard at midnight is suddenly very, very close at hand.

Let me give you a sample of the tunes the Stars were whistling after falling behind the Detroit Red Wings 2-games-to-none in their best-of-seven series.

Goalie Marty Turco: "The intensity built for us. It took a little longer than we'd like, but this locker room has no doubt that we can win some hockey games at home."

Center Brad Richards: "That was a close game, and it could have gone either way."

Center Mike Modano: "I think it was better. The effort was certainly there, and we played harder for the majority of the game."

Turco again: "We do feel like we're right there. The reality is, we're on the right path. We've been building since the drop of the puck in Game 1 to this point, and we just need to keep skyrocketing up for Game 3, and I have no doubt that we will.

"I certainly felt a lot better the last two periods. It was a good sign for me to play my best hockey of the series so far. That'll just lead into the next game for me. The rest of the team is right there."

Of course, they're all saying what they have to say after losing their second straight to a talented and focused Detroit team, but where Turco and the Stars find themselves is in a deepening hole that could reach six-feet before they even know what hit them.

Here's the reality Turco alluded to: The Stars showed the residual effects of that four-overtime thriller against San Jose a week ago in the Wings' 4-1 rout in Game 1, but they played their best period of hockey in this series in the first 20 minutes of Game 2 Saturday night... and still found themselves down 2-1.

They had a breakaway and a 4-on-1 odd-man rush in that first period, and in both cases failed to even get shots on net.

The realization that they just may not be good enough to make this series competitive, much less win four of the next five games to beat the Wings, is beginning to dawn on them.

And that may say more about the Wings than it does the Stars, who have already overachieved to get this far in the playoffs.

"We haven't done it [come back from 0-2] before [in these playoffs], but we're going to see what we're made of," captain Brenden Morrow said. "[Down] two games is tough against anyone, especially the Wings, the top team in the league. But [Game 2] was a good step."

A good step that still resulted in a loss. The Stars continue to be whipped in every facet of the game: goaltending, shots, physical play, skating, you name it.

The Wings have been a step ahead at every turn, even without their top playoff scorer Saturday night. Huge Johan Franzen, who had scored a dozen playoff goals, is out with concussion-like symptoms and won't play tonight either.

For awhile it appeared that break would be evened out when, not if, the NHL handed down a suspension to center Mike Ribeiro for his two-handed whack job on Wings' goalie Chris Osgood as Game 2 ended. Prudently, the league instead reviewed the tapes and realized that Osgood had instigated the incident by clipping Ribeiro in the face with the butt end of his stick, so there was no suspension. Ribeiro and Osgood were instead fined undisclosed amounts.