Jennifer Floyd Engel 
Could it possibly be these Stars really have a killer instinct?
ANAHEIM -- For four long seasons, Dallas Stars fans have been waiting for a sign.
Something, anything to suggest this team was different.
And the second period of Game 1 ended up providing the perfect proving ground for them. Because in a shock-the-hockey-world turn of events, the Stars were dominating play and up on Anaheim by a couple of goals. Thus leading to an inevitable question for any longtime Stars watchers:
Would they come out aggressive and hunt down the goal to finish off the Ducks? Or would they sit back and cross fingers and try to hold on as per usual?
How the Stars answered that question – attacking en route to a 4-0 victory – goes a long way to making me think this Stars team may just have what their predecessors lacked. A killer instinct.
“Yeah, there was quite a bit of talk about continuing doing what we did to get us a lead and not let off and not hope the clock down faster,” Stars forward Mike Modano said. “We said not to let back, not to play the score, keep going, keep moving, keep advancing the puck, don’t look back, don’t try to make the cute play but, if it is there, try it.”
The asterisk is the Ducks helped them a little, OK, a lot by forming a parade to the penalty box. All of the Stars goals came on the power play and you can bet right about the time you were downing a bowl of Cheerios this morning that Ducks GM Brian Burke was on the phone with the league whining about the disparity.
Do not discount this impacting Game 2 either.
The dude is like the E.F. Hutton of the league. When he whines, Gary Bettman wets his pants. Then overreacts. Expect a lot of tacky-tack calls on Dallas on Saturday.
Fallout from Power Playgate is for another day, though. The Stars deserve to savor what they did Thursday which was impressive on many levels, starting with the fact the smacked the defending Stanley Cup champs in the face. Literally and figuratively.
They played without fear. They played aggressive.
They basically sent a message to Ducks goalie J.S. Giguere that this is not 2003. They did likewise for themselves.
Their big-money guys played well. So did their baby defensemen.
And after withstanding an early flurry by Anaheim thanks almost entirely to goalie Marty Turco bailing them out, the Stars hit back. Hard. Wielding their power play like a weapon.
Ducks player had played lip service to staying out of the box before Game 1 then immediately ignored themselves.
There was Travis Moen elbowing Matt Niskanen. And Brian Sutherby was whistled for a tacky-tack cross checking penalty on Trevor Daley in the first period.
Both penalties turned into Stars goals. What was ironic was how neither power play looked particularly impressive until right about the time the lamp lit.
The Stars were having trouble getting the puck across the blue line and setting up so on Modano took it upon himself to do so by himself. And on both goals Steve Ott was parking his pesky little butt in the vicinity of the net on both.
He tipped the first goal in and provided a distraction on Loui Eriksson’s goal about six minutes later. This is how they ended up leading 2-0 at the end of one.
And I feel pretty confident saying there is not a single person who has even casually followed Stars hockey over the past couple of seasons who felt safe. Players had to be wondering as well.
And how could they not?
I am not breaking news when I say the Stars are not good with a lead. They sit on it. They get complacent. They start playing this safe hockey that like nine times out of 10 blows up in their face. And every single time they talk about how they can not do this, how they have to stay aggressive, how it is crazy to think they can win 1-0 or 2-1.
Then they immediately go do it again.
This is why how the Stars came out in the second period was so impressive. Yes, their goals came on the power play but they got those chances by driving the net and forcing the Ducks to do something stupid.
“Heading into the third period, that’s exactly what we talked about,” Ott said. “Pushing the game ahead North, getting behind their D and continuing to forecheck like it is a zero-zero game. Our problems have stemmed from sitting back and trying to be defensive minded and we didn’t do that this time.”
And their second-period power play goals were as pretty as their first-period ones were ugly.
Stars center Mike Riberio set up both goals – a powerful top shelf goal by Jere Lehtinen and what amounted to a tap in for captain Brenden Morrow.
On both goals, Ribeiro’s patience paid off. He was really good. They all were.
Of course, questions remain. The Stars still need to prove they can score at even strength. They have to prove the attitude they took into the second period is who they are, not just an attitude they were trying on to see if it fits.
And so comes the next test.
How do they come out in Game 2? Do they come in aggressive and hunt down the victory to bury the Ducks? Or do they sit back and be OK with a split?
If the second period is really indicative, you have your sign.
These Stars are different. They feel different. They play different. And that just might lead to a different result.
“That is really what we are made of,” Modano said. “How we played ... that is all that we have drilled in our psyche for years.”
