Stars run record to 9-2, but not satisfied

During a week that saw the Dallas Cowboys dominate the headlines with their normal drama, the Stars quietly ran their record to 9-2, winning 2 out of the 3 games they've played since my last post.

While the team has to be excited with their place in the standings, especially with division mates Anaheim and San Jose off to similar scorching starts, they indicated this week that they're not satisfied with the way in which they've been getting the wins. In the three wins, the Stars were outplayed for the majority of the time but somehow found a way to win. As Stars analyst Darryl Reaugh is often fond of saying, "they can't all be oil paintings."

On Monday night while most of the city was focused on the events in Irving, the Stars hosted the Vancouver Canucks. It was the final game of a 3 games in 4 nights set and the Stars played like it. They seemed a step behind most of the night, but behind a strong game in net by Marty Turco (with a little help from Sergei Zubov on the last save of the game) the Stars pulled out the 2-1 win. (Follow the link in the game story and check out the game highlights  Pay close attention to the end where Zubov gets his stick in to stop a puck from trickling over the goal line and tying the game as the final seconds tick off.)

Next up was a showdown with the hated Detroit Red Wings. The Stars again found themselves behind quickly after a lackluster beginning. They battled back, but were unable to put the puck home when they needed to - on a crucial 4 minute power play in the 3rd - to get back in it. The Red Wings are the only team in the Western Conference that Marty Turco has a career losing record against, and that trend continued as the Wings and their throng of fans left the American Airlines Center with a 4-3 win. (Click the highlights link in the game story to view. Note the Mike Modano goal early in the game. That was vintage Modano. He looked 10 years younger on that play as he picked up the puck at the defensive blue line and blew down the ice to split the defense and beat Dominik Hasek to tie the game at 1.)

The Stars then hosted the LA Kings who are struggling this year. Since it was the 2nd game of the rare back to back home games, Marty Turco got the night off. Rookie backstop Mike Smith who had never before been scored upon in this league (he was 1-0 with a shutout coming in), surrendered his first goal 45 seconds into the 2nd period but he was good enough to give the Stars a chance, and new Star Jeff Halpern took the opportunity to bang one home late in the 3rd for the 3-2 win. (Again, check out the highlights on the game story page).

The Kings game was another game in which the Stars looked fatigued and lackluster. Nothing really was going on until Steve Ott and Matthew Barnaby got the crowd, and their bench, into it in the 2nd period with back to back scraps. Unfortunately Steve Ott fell awkwardly after being tagged pretty good on the chin by Tom Kostopoulos and broke his ankle. He had surgery on Sunday and is expected to miss the next 8 weeks. Not exactly the way Coach Dave Tippett wanted to work some of his reserves into the lineup but now it looks as though Patrik Stefan and Mathias Tjarnqvist will get a chance to play. There are options in the minors for Tippett, either Loui Eriksson or Jr. Lessard could get a call up if the first two don't provide what the coach is looking for.

Up next for the Stars is the return of Bill Guerin on Wednesday night. It'll be interesting to see how Billy G. is received. Ideally, would love to see the Stars dominate the game and get an easy win with Billy getting a goal late to a huge round of applause. We'll see how it plays out.

After that little get together the Stars will make their first Western Canada roadtrip this year to Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.

News and Notes:

On Tuesday, the NHL announced that Marty Turco is the recipient of the 8th Annual NHL Foundation Player Award. According to the league, the award is given to a player "who applies the core values of hockey - – commitment, perseverance and teamwork – to enrich the lives of people in his community."

Congratulations Marty! This is no surprise to those of us who have seen firsthand how Turco interacts with fans, and especially kids. I've attended the last two Stars' training camps and have watched as Turco brightens the days of young fans. He takes time to sign, take pictures, even getting down on a knee or squatting to get on their level and really converse with the young fans. "Turks" seems like a genuinely good guy and this is one of the reasons I'm really hoping he can get that playoff monkey off his back. He deserves the success.

Why today doesn't suck in puck history 

October 31, 1942 - Rookie Maurice Richard played his first NHL game with the Montreal Canadiens. He wore #15, and picked up his first NHL point (an assist) 36 seconds into the game, a 3-2 win for over the Bruins, at the Forum.

October 31, 1983 - Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky became the first player in NHL history to get seven career hat tricks before age 21, when he scored three times (and added an assist) in an 11-4 win over the visiting Quebec Nordiques.

(Facts provided by the Hockey Hall of Fame)