Stars coach Marc Crawford ready to make line changes

Posted Monday, Nov. 02, 2009 Comments   (0) Print Share Share Reprints
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By MIKE HEIKA

Special to the Star-Telegram

McKINNEY — Stars coach Marc Crawford has been consistent in his line selections for the first 14 games of the season, going almost exclusively with the same top two lines every game.

But two forwards are coming back from injuries, and the line of Brenden Morrow, Mike Ribeiro and Jamie Benn were a minus-5 in the last two games. So Crawford showed Monday in practice at Dr Pepper StarCenter in McKinney that he is open to some juggling this week.

"You can’t have as many defensive miscues as we’ve been having and then say, 'I’m just going to keep rolling with it,’ " Crawford said. "And we have three guys coming into our lineup if you count [Steve Ott], so we have great depth in our group, and that should be a real weapon for us."

Crawford put Jere Lehtinen (intercostal muscle) on a line with Ribeiro and Morrow and moved rookie Jamie Benn onto a line with Mike Modano (ribs) and Ott (who just returned from a two-game suspension).

"This gives us some solid options," Crawford said.

While Lehtinen is 37 and has battled hip, groin and midsection muscle pulls that have limited him to two games this season, he also is a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward in hockey and is the Stars’ all-time leader in plus-minus at plus 184. In 12 NHL seasons, Lehtinen has never finished as a minus player.

"No, I don’t mind the guy on my line at all," Ribeiro joked when asked about playing beside Lehtinen. "He’s so good on the backcheck and on just helping everyone out. And we’ve played together before and been pretty successful."

Lehtinen played 73 games two seasons ago and had 26 goals and 17 assists while Morrow and Ribeiro had career-best seasons. Last season, Lehtinen played on a line with Ribeiro while Morrow was injured, and in one 20-game stretch, he tallied five goals and 14 assists and was plus-7.

"He’s just a talented player who understands the game and helps make his linemates better," Crawford said.

The move will send Benn down to the "checking line" with Modano (who has played one game this season because of the rib injury) and Ott. Modano said he was excited about playing beside the talented rookie.

"We’ll turn him into a checker before you know it," Modano joked. "We’ll brainwash him."

Briefly

D Mark Fistric was hit in the ankle with a shot and had to leave practice.

C Brad Richards (groin) and RW Loui Eriksson (flulike symptoms) missed practice.

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