The game was more about potential endings for the Stars than about who would win.
Bobby Ryan sports #9 in honor of his hero Mike Modano, who is contemplating retirement (which elicited the expected “One MO Year!” signs in the crowd), so, fittingly, Mo was the hero.
Oh, and so much for the whole macho thing. When he acknowleged the fans, I thought Modano was gonna start bawling.
Dallas may also be parting ways with right winger Jere Lehtinen and goaltender Marty Turco. Turkey goes free agent after this season and just about every reporter and their grandmother is predicting that Dallas isn’t interested in resigning.
The fact that the Ducks lost was no real surprise. This was a game that statistically, was pretty pointless for both teams. The real surprise was that the game went all the way into a shootout. That says a lot for recently returned goaltender Jonas Hiller and the determination of the dudes who haven’t seen a whole lot of ice time over the course of the past few months.
With most of our big guns sitting out this road trip, the likes of Brett Festering, Nick Bonino and Dan Sexton used this rare opportunity to sharpen their skills a rack up a point or two.
Especially Bonino and Big Sexy (who had been a healthy scratch of late due to poor performance). Of Bonino, coach Randy Caryle said “Bonino’s finding out the game is played at a much higher pace than he’s seen before.” And of Dan, “Sexton showed his speed and quickness,” although Caryle sounded a bit disappointed Sexton didn’t score in the shootout.
Hiller said he was still experiencing a bit of stiffness, but that didn’t seem to be too much of a problem considering he stopped a staggering 49 (yes campers, you read that correctly FORTY-NINE) shots. Which basically means the Ducks defense totally sucked ice.
One of the few shots that got by was an almost illegal shot by Modano, but Hillsey’s head was filled with nothing but happy thoughts last night. “I’m not even mad at him for scoring that goal,” Hiller said of Modano. “It might have been a high stick or whatever. But it was definitely a good game to play.”
Off Target Around the Rink
Not my teams, don’t care who won, but anytime a goaltender throws down it’s worth a watch. Tampa Bay goalie Mike Smith puts a good ol’ fashioned beatdown on Ottawa’s Chris Neil after Neil commits an unbelievably flagrant trip.
I can’t decide what’s funnier, watching both teams pelt across the ice once they realize what’s happening, Smith pouncing on Neil and continuing to pound away as the zebras start grabbing bodies or the announcer calling the Sens schoolyard bullies.
http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=35&id=65470&intcmpid=nhl-vidmod-hp