They are a resilient bunch, aren't they?
Stick a fork in them last week when Anaheim rallies in the third period and they follow that with a sleepwalk through Pittsburgh, right?
Uh, no, they get a near perfect game in San Jose on Tuesday.
Well, then, surely you would say they don't have the necessary moxie when they melt down and lose to the Kings in OT after posting a 3-0 lead in the second period Thursday?
Actually, no, they just get mad and shut down Anaheim Friday in what could turn out to be a huge game in the playoff race.
We all want to be armchair coaches, and we all have questioned some of Dave Tippett's moves. The team wasn't prepared as we would have liked. The lineup shuffling was more than we would have liked. The poise wasn't there when it was needed most.
But you have got to give the guy credit for fighting through adversity. Every time you want to write this team off, it seems to rise from the dead.
Can it break the five-game home losing streak? Will it fall to the struggling Canadiens on Sunday?
Who knows. The Stars never do things the easy way, so they probably will find a way to make this come down to the final game of the season (which is at Anaheim, by the way).
But give Dave Tippett and his team a polite golf clap for their will. They continue to fight _ through injuries, through meltdowns, through the negative aura of our second-guessing. And that takes a certain amount of courage.
Do you believe they will make the playoffs?
Today, I do.
_Mike Heika
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