The Phoenix Coyotes continued their hot streak by closing out their six-game road trip with another win, as they downed the Dallas Stars, 5-2, on Tuesday night January the 9th at American Airlines Center.  It was the seventh win in a row for Phoenix.  Dallas was a step slow for much of the game and Phoenix played a solid 60 minutes to earn the win.  "For whatever reason, we weren't emotionally engaged in the game and if you do that, you are going to be behind," said Stars Head Coach Dave Tippett. "You have to muster up something no matter what you're feeling.

A two-minute blitz by the Western Conference-leading Anaheim Ducks had the Dallas Stars wobbling. Teemu Selanne knocked them out.  Selanne registered his 19th career hat trick -- including scoring two power-play goals -- and the Ducks scored three goals in a 2:10 span late in the second period to snap a tie and earn a 5-1 victory over the Stars on Thursday night January 11th at American Airlines Center.  The news got even worse after the game when Stars coach Dave Tippett said defenseman Sergei Zubov will miss the next couple of weeks because of an upper body injury that is required surgery. 

After perhaps their most difficult stretch of the season, the Stars got back on track with a 3-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings in a special matinee matchup for Martin Luther King Day Monday at the American Airlines Center.  The Stars snapped their three-game losing streak while continuing their season-long mastery of Los Angeles, winning their sixth game of the season against them.  In the third game of a four-game homestand, Dallas rebounded from two of their most lopsided losses of the season with a convincing victory that was a complete team effort.  "Those are valuable points right there," Stars coach Dave Tippett said.  "I thought our whole team stepped up. Our guys worked hard and I thought they brought that work ethic on the ice. 

For Marty Turco and the Dallas Stars, seven turned out to be a lucky number.  Turco made 18 saves and Jere Lehtinen scored twice to help the ####ed-up Stars hold on to defeat the Calgary Flames, 4-2, on a wintry Wednesday night at American Airlines Center on January 17th.  Despite missing seven regulars, the Stars were able to help Turco garner his 160th career win, tying him with Ed Belfour for the most all-time victories in franchise history. Belfour originally set the mark when he toiled in Dallas from 1997-2002.  The Stars beat Calgary for the sixth time in the last seven meetings in Dallas, and won two straight overall to open a five-point cushion over the Flames for sixth place in the Western Conference.  They also finished their four-game homestand with a 2-2 mark.

Is it too early to talk about this?  Is it politically correct?  Who wants fifth?  If your fifth you are going to have to play a tougher fourth seeded team in the first playoff round.  If your sixth, you get an easier opponent, albeit the Northwest Division winner, even if it is a third seed.

It was only fitting that on Hockey Day in Minnesota, in the Dallas Stars' 1000th regular season game since moving from Minnesota in 1993, the Stars returned to their former home and defeated the hometown Wild 2-1 in a shootout Saturday night January 20th at the Excel Energy Center.  In the final game before the NHL All-Stars converge on Dallas, goaltender Marty Turco made 25 saves and Stu Barnes scored the deciding goal in the longest shootout in club history to lead the injury-depleted Stars to their third straight triumph after three losses in a row last week.  Turco, who has started 13 of the Stars' last 14 games, won his 161st career game, all with Dallas, to pass Ed Belfour as the franchise's all-time winningest goaltender.  He made several key saves late in the third period with the score tied 1-1 and then denied seven Minnesota players in the shootout, including a diving poke-check to derail Pascal Dupuis' attempt in the ninth round to secure the victory.  "What a great game to go into the break," said Turco, who was one of two Dallas representatives in Wednesday's All-Star Game.

I really wanted to go to this game.  As it turned out I had an interview in Minneapolis on Friday morning before the game.  But the hotel expense to go to that wouldn't allow me to stay another couple of nights to see the game.  Oh well, they'll be back in Minnesota.  Call me selfish, but that's one of the reasons i would like to see the Pittsburgh Penquins in Kansas City too.  It would give me more opportunities to see my Stars.

There was an all-star game?  On the 24th?  Who knew?  All I heard anyone talk about was fancy hi-tech uniforms.

In one of the most exciting regular season games ever played at the American Airlines Center, superstar Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to tie the game in the third period and defeat the Dallas Stars 4-3 in a shootout Friday night.  In the Penguins' first visit to Dallas in almost four years, Crosby, the 19-year-old center who leads the NHL in scoring but failed to register a point in Wednesday night's All-Star Game here, earned two assists. And on a team loaded with young talent, it was veteran winger Mark Recchi who stole the spotlight with two goals, including the 500th of his career, which tied the game 3-3 with 8:01 remaining in the third period.  Dallas had its three-game winning streak snapped, falling to 5-2 in the shootout this year and to 17-3 over the past two years since the new tie-breaking formula was introduced.  "A lot of excitement," said Stars coach Dave Tippett of the game.

Seven shootouts.  Excuse me for being a party ####.  But what would happen if they played a five minute period of three on three hockey before going to the shootout?  Wouldn't that be cool?  If not, let me hear it.  Am I stupid?

With a chance to make up some ground with three games against the two teams ahead of them in the Pacific Division, the Stars stumbled in the first test, dropping a 4-1 decision to the Anaheim Ducks Sunday afternoon at the Honda Center.  In a nationally-televised game on NBC, the Stars lost for the first time in regulation in their last five games, and now trail the division-leading Ducks by 10 points. Dallas now faces San Jose, six points ahead in the standings, for two road straight games.  Down two goals for most of the game, the Stars clawed their way back into the game to make it 2-1 on Jere Lehtinen's penalty shot goal midway through the third period. But Anaheim rebounded with two more goals in the next two and a half minutes to take a commanding 4-1 lead and put the game out of reach.

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