Five for Fighting

A good sign

Was reading about the Stars signing Brian Sutherby earlier today and I've got to say, I like it. Sutherby adds a nice grit element to this team, yet he's shown a few times that he can play with the skill group, too. He's been asked to do quite a bit in the Stars' injury trouble, but he's been up to it. So good for the Stars for sewing him up for a few more seasons.

-- Tracey Myers

Monday practice update

    Mixed bag today. The Stars had an optional practice. Jere Lehtinen (upper body) skated beforehand, but will not travel to St. Louis. Fabian Brunnstrom (upper body) did not skate and also will not travel to St. Louis. Both are listed as day to day.
    There was a large media scrum that talked a great deal about Mike Modano. Modano wasn't there, but Dave Tippett said the media was making too big of a deal out of this. The bottom line, though, is the message has been sent _ the Stars need everyone on board. If Dallas wants to make the playoffs, it has to put it all on the line in these games. Tippett feels Modano didn't do that Sunday. It doesn't matter if he did Thursday and Friday, they need it every game right now, just like it was the playoffs.
    I'm not sure what Tippett is considering for lines, but it will be interesting to see what they do with Brendan Morrison now that Brunnstrom is out. Could we see James Neal back with Modano and Chris Conner, and then maybe place Brian Sutherby and Mark Parrish with Morrison? Those lines seem to make more sense.
_Mike Heika

What's the best way to use Mike Modano?

If Dave Tippett wants more from Mike Modano, as he stated Sunday after a 3-1 loss to Montreal, does he need to give Modano more to work with?
    In Tuesday's win over San Jose, Modano played on a line with Loui Eriksson, and looked good. Eriksson is a lot like Jere Lehtinen, so he can be either an offensive force or a defensive player, meaning Modano has the opportunity to play on a strong two-way line. Brian Sutherby then played with James Neal and Fabian Brunnstrom, and had a great game. Mike Ribeiro, who played with Steve Ott and Mark Parrish did not have a great game.
    So, in the past two games, Eriksson was moved up to the top line with Ribeiro and Ott, and Neal and Brunnstrom played with new Stars center Brendan Morrison. Ribeiro's line has responded very well, while Modano has not been great while playing with Brian Sutherby and Chris Conner.
    So, if you put Modano with Neal and Eriksson, do you think he would play better? Or, does he just need to suck it up and play whatever role Tippett places him in, and play hard? Modano is an interesting study, because it is difficult to tell if he's really into a game. But, he also puts up with a lot more than most superstars his age have to.
    Joe Sakic is not going to be put on a checking line. Neither is Mats Sundin. Those guys get to play with great wingers. Modano often is asked to make his linemates better. So is this a Modano problem or a coaching problem? It could be a little of both, but what's your take? _Mike Heika

Tra's powerless Top 5

Hey kids,
    I don't have to explain the title on this one. And I'm only doing five because, let's face it, there aren't 10 good things to talk about in this one. Unless I break down each Stars power play. Anyway, the countdown:
    1, Egad, that power play. Wow, and I don't mean that in a good way. This power play, especially at home, has just become a big bag of empty. Just for the record, the Stars, in their six-game home losing streak, are 3 for 33 on the power play. And I've hit on the 5 on 3 so much I'm getting tired of talking about it. Your scoring odds on a 5 on 3 should be ridiculously high. But not for this team, not right now.
    2, Calling out centers. Coach Dave Tippett wasn't happy with Mike Modano and Brendan Morrison's performances on Sunday. "If we don't get something out of Modano and Morrison soon, we're going to be in trouble. We need scoring from more than one line and our margin of error is so slim."
    3, Loui at it again. He's been a steady bright spot once again, and obviously it doesn't hurt that he's on the line with Mike Ribeiro and Steve Ott. But he now has four goals in three games, and he's one of those pieces the Stars need.
    4, Ott and his teeth. Or lack thereof. The guy was once again a sparkplug, drawing that bevy of penalties that gave the Stars those power plays that went absolutely nowhere. But hey, he tried.
    5, Here we go again. OK, I would normally write in a road victory for the Stars when they go to St. Louis on Tuesday. But they haven't played very well in St. Louis in recent years. So, are we back to apocalypse talk here, folks?

-- Tracey Myers

Tippett calls out Mo, Morrison

Dave Tippett was talking about power plays and the lack of execution in the second period when he turned his attention to his centers, namely Mike Modano and Brendan Morrison. Tippett was unhappy with the performance, or lack thereof from both of them on Sunday, and he made his feelings known:
    "If we don’t get something out of Modano and Morrison soon, there’s trouble for us. These two guys, they need to lead a line to get some goals. There’s nothing there right now."
    He added more later:
    "There are some people really giving effort, but it’s what you do after effort. We talk about it all the time. When you have the ability to make plays and make people around you better, you better do that, because it makes our team better. it makes our team better."
    We all saw the game... do you agree with Tippett's assessment?

-- Tracey Myers

Yikes

That's really all you can say right now. Christopher Higgins just scored for the Canadiens after Marty Turco went to play the puck behind the net, then took way too much time in getting back in it. Didn't really get back, actually, and Higgins' shot now gives the Habs a 3-1 advantage here at 5:27.

Don't know what's happened to the Stars but they have gone bye-bye. Jeez, it's odd-man rushes galore for Montreal right now.

-- Tracey Myers

How the Stars can win this

OK, here are my three ways the Stars can win this game:
    1, The top line of Steve Ott-Mike Ribeiro-Loui Eriksson keeps up what they've been doing.
    2, Lines 3-4 follow the lead of the top line.
    3, Pretend you're in HP Pavilion.

Sound good, kids?

-- Tracey Myers

Habs up; this was inevitable

The Stars had just killed off Mike Modano's penalty (by the way, not a good game for him today) when Alex Kovalev knocked one into the top corner to give the Canadiens a 2-1 advantage at the 14:51 mark. Wow, how the momentum, lead, etc. changes when you don't take advantage of opportunities.

If the Stars lose this one, they have no one to blame but themselves.

-- Tracey Myers

And now it's tied

Well, it was bound to happen, wasn't it? A little back and forth with the Canadiens in the Stars' zone, and Andrei Kostitsyn is wide open for a goal five minutes into the second period.

The Stars are 1 for 8 on power plays today. Do you really think they're going to get any more in this one?

-- Tracey Myers

Opportunity squandered

The Stars had a boatload of 5 on 3 time and they did absolutely nothing with it. And last second of Montreal's final first-period penalty has just ticked away.

All that, and the Stars have nothing to show for it. That may come back to haunt them.

-- Tracey Myers