Past, Present & the Future

So we swept the Kings this year, going to only give up one game to the Coyotes as long as we play our game, three to the Sharks and hopefully no more than three to the Ducks. So after picking up all those points in our own division, why are we only in third place? The answer - it doesn't matter! The Stars are a top team in the NHL and I don't care what people said about them before the season started or what they are saying now about where we are and what chances we have in the playoffs. I know for a fact that the Stars players' mindset is not only making the playoffs but making it through the first round. Do I think they are thinking about where they are at in the standings, absolutely! But more importantly they are thinking about what it is going to take to win the next game more than who their opponent will be in the first round.

So here are my predictions for the eight spots in the West. Not going to touch the East until the final week. Number one will be Nashville. I don't like picking Nashville but I don't want the Dead Wings in first again. Second place will go to the Sharks. They are playing solid hockey night after night and nothing seems to faze them. Third will be held by Vancouver. They have been the strongest team in the Northwest despite the Wild making a late season rush. Fourth will go to the Dead Wings because they aren't strong enough to beat out the Preds but are strong enough to beat out Anaheim. The Ducks will sit in 5th and will beat out the Dead Wings in the first round. Sitting sixth will be Dallas and will take out the Canucks in a long drawn out first round. Seventh will be the Wild and will get beat by the Sharks in the first round. Finally and more surprisingly in eighth will be Colorado. Since they fought so hard to gain a playoff spot, they will continue that run past the first round of the playoffs and defeat the Predators.

That is it, my predictions. Give me your thoughts, arguments, support and your predictions!

Respect. Where is it and what does it mean?

We all can agree that Tootoo’s hit was cowardly. So was Simon’s from last week. But is this just part of the game? Is it the adrenaline rush of the sport? Is it lack of skill from the perpetrator? Or is it total lack of respect of another human and just plain cowardice?
Now sure the game has always been a violent one. Look back to the days of the Philadelphia Flyers and their Broadstreet Bullies! Regardless this is not a justifiable reason for some of these acts. There have been a lot worse incidents in our history; for example Maurice “The Rocket” Richard using his stick to club an opponent over the head or his suspension for punching a linesman in the face. Or Dale Hunter’s brutal crosscheck on New York Islanders forward Pierre Turgeon. It goes on and on. Now I am not a big fan of the fighting but there is a time and a place to stand up for your team mates. It used to be that if you were going to continually try to injure and pester a Gretzky, the coach would send out the enforcer (in this case Dave Semenko) to teach you a lesson. Now, if an enforcer is to go out and protect the star player he gets a penalty. So as a result the finesse players now are continually slashed, speared and subjected to all the dirty moves that anyone can think of. Now I know that I am starting to digress a bit but my point is that if we are to allow violence in the game…at least let the teams protect their star players! If you want to take cheap shots on the Crosby’s, Modano’s and Ovechkins of the league, be prepared to pay the price. What Robidas was trying to do is honourable. Tootoo was simply being disrespectful to the players and the game. Crosschecking a player in the face, using your stick as a weapon shows what an untalented and immature player you are. And what does it say about you as a person?!
On another point: Modano’s 500th. There have been posts that the crowds booed him. Is this disrespectful? Well simply stated, yes it is. But what are we to do? I feel this shows the true culture of the home team fans. I have seen many Stanley Cups won in the losing team’s arena. And sadly some of the fans will boo even an event like that. Myself being from Vancouver, Canada I was witness to many of Wayne Gretzky’s record breaking achievements on our ice. Did we boo? No! Respectfully we would either cheer him or if you were not a fan of his, you remained silent. That is a respectful fan. You don’t have to cheer all the monumental events that happen on your ice but booing is childish. And on a final note; the most disrespectful act any fan can do…booing another person’s national anthem!!! Words cannot describe my disgust when I hear a fan do this. We may not always like another country or their politics but to boo during a national anthem is beyond human dignity.
Respect each other, respect your team and theirs and above all show your true character by being an example of dignity…and respect yourself.

Darren Morley

Standing Tall

I've been hesitating a post because I kept hoping for good news, and while I have some (interviewed my favorite Ice Girl tonight) it isn't exactly the news I was hoping for. I try to stay away from this phrase, but I think it's fair to say: The Stars are in a slump.

The month of February was a good one. The team went 8-2-1, with some of our best long-term hockey since we opened the season. However, coming out of February has been disastrous. Tippet can't find harmony with the lines, the lines can't find harmony with each other, and the goals our team is barely posting 1.5 goals per game. To top that off our league best lowest goals record has shit the bed dropping 9 points in the last two games to bring us 3 behind the Devils and tied with Detroit, yeah you heard me right, the Red Wings. Just a week ago we had 9 goals on the ladies in red, and now we're holding hands with them.

Now, I'm not pushing the panic button. I still believe if starting Friday at the Blue Jackets we can clean up our passes, target our shots better and actually pepper the net and not the post we can retake the Sharks, who are sub 500 hockey in the last 10, and overtake the Ducks, who are barely pulling ahead with single-point OTLs. But we can ill afford these games where we spend the first two periods watching the other team talley points and then try to come back in the third period. Want to know why we got beat 4-0 on Sunday? Because our previous 3 games had been 100 yard dashes at the end, because we couldn't concentrate, because our passing was inconsistent and because while our hearts are there, our minds are out picking daisies.

We have a contending team, no, we ARE a contending team. I want to see these boys walk out of their locker room tomorrow night, stand proudly on the ice in Columbus and stare down Brain Boucher, Fredrik Norrena & Pascal Leclaire and show them what we're made of, show them (whichever unlucky bastard ends up in the net) what it's like to play against a championship team.

And in honor of this joyous declaration I bring you one of the most classic "tough get going" speeches of all time, you'll recognize this from the 3rd period Jumbotron videos:

A Shining Star To Remember

The NHL has many player trophies but there is one that is in memorium to a Stars player – the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is an annual award that is given to the National Hockey League player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.
Who was Bill Masterton?
Bill was the first and only player to die in an NHL game. On January 13, 1968, 4 minutes into a game against the Oakland Seals at the Met Center, Bill was checked by Larry Cahan and Ron Harris of Oakland, and fell backwards onto the ice. Bill died from what doctors described as a "massive brain injury." His death would result in more intense lobbying for hockey players to wear helmets, which were uncommon in professional hockey at that time.
No other North Star ever wore his No. 19, and it was officially retired in 1987, six years before the North Stars left Minnesota. The Bill Masterton Trophy is named in his honor. The trophy goes to dedication, sportsmanship, and perseverance.
Previous years winners are:
2006 Teemu Selanne - Anaheim Ducks
2004 Bryan Berard - Chicago Blackhawks
2003 Steve Yzerman - Detroit Red Wings
2002 Saku Koivu - Montreal Canadiens
2001 Adam Graves - New York Rangers
2000 Ken Daneyko - New Jersey Devils

Getting our butts kicked never felt so good!

Come on guys, do you really feel like throwing the towel in now? We haven't been beat by four regulation goals like we did on Sunday since the beginning of January. We were due. We played bad but not that bad. Heck, we peppered the post at least two if not three times and the saves Nabokov made were phenomenal. You know as well as I do that when we play against the Sharks and Nabokov is on his game, he is almost impossible to score on. The Sharks were coming off a four game loosing streak and needed a change of pace.

The whole series against the Sharks this year went 5-3 our way. We have consistently gained points on the majority of the Pacific Division teams this season which builds confidence when and if we see them in the playoffs. Would we have liked to take that last game? Yes. Did it kill us that we lost? No. Are we in a loosing slump? Absolutely not. We have three days to regroup and take it to St. Louis and Columbus who have both beat us in the past meetings. So we are eight points away from Anaheim however, we have two games in hand and two games against them so it is well within reach. Just focus on the "soft" upcoming schedule and play solid hockey while the Ducks and Sharks keep on their shaky track! March Madness baby!!

goooOOOOOD MORNING DALLAS STARS

Pardon the Robin Williams reference in the article's title, but it just fits and I couldn't resist. Last night, between the first and second periods of a game I'd like to pretend didn't happen I spent 20 minutes with the boys of SportsFaction.com. We discussed some of the recent trades including Peter Forsburg, Ryan Smyth, and of course Mattias Norstrom.

The boys have a great site and spend their time gathering as much sports news as they possibly can. Not only that but they welcome all sports fans to write their own op-ed pieces. Definately click your way over to them, and even more so, definitely check out the show I was on: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/hostpage.aspx?show_id=14137.

Shall We Dance?

With the race to the playoffs heating up and as we head into the busiest month of the season for the Stars playing 16 games, 7 at home and 9 on the road, I am glad the Stars are where they are right now. Sitting with 79 points we are only 5 behind Anaheim for the Pacific Division title, 11 behind from being the Western Conference champs and 13 ahead of being knocked out of a playoff spot. We have one game against the Sharks and two games against the Ducks to gain even more ground towards that Pacific Division title.

As far as the ground to make up for the Western Conference title, that is going to be a much harder battle. We play Nashville twice and Detroit once and besides the Ducks we don’t have another team to gain on when it comes to points. So what can we do? For starters, we can score more than one goal in regulation and not wait till the third period to do it! The type of play in the past two games is not going to cut it when we play the top teams in the conference. Play consistent hockey and we will consistently be at the top.

Now, as for the dancing, since there is a nice 10 point cushion between the 8th seed and the 9th seed in the West, there will be a lot of “dancing” between playoff spots between now and the end of the season. Vancouver, Calgary, and Minnesota are all separated by one point and San Jose is very close to falling into 7th or 8th after the Stars passed them up earlier this week for 5th. Granted Dallas could easily fall as well if they were to slip into a loosing slump like the Flames did and the Sharks are doing, however we are no longer suffering from long term injuries (besides Morrow) and have plenty in Iowa just itching to contribute to our success.

-Scooter