for those of us who still don't know why there is no line for the LA/Dallas game.
this from Stars official site
Turco gets his third straight start
by J. Douglas Foster
As important as the two weekend victories against Colorado and San Jose were, the Stars don't have to look long at the
Western Conference standings to realize that Wednesday's tilt with Los Angeles, most likely, carries even more weight.
After all the Stars, with a game in hand on the Kings, stand one point back of Wednesday's foe for second place in the Pacific
Division. Simply put, a victory by Dallas would help the Stars leapfrog the Kings into second, and into sole possession of sixth
place in the Western Conference.
"They're all big games right now," Stars captain Derian Hatcher said. "Anytime we play LA, Vancouver, San Jose. ?any of
these teams. They're all going to be big games."
With that in mind, Stars coach Rick Wilson has decided to ride the hot goaltender, announcing Tuesday morning that
second-year man Marty Turco will get the start in goal for Dallas against the Kings.
It's Turco's third consecutive start and will be the fifth consecutive game in which he has seen action. Since the Olympic break,
Turco is 3-0 with a 1.26 goals-against average, and has a 1.06 goals-against average in the three victories.
He has also turned in a .947 save percentage, another number which helped him win this week's NHL Player of the Week
award.
"He's playing well and it seemed like the right thing to do for the team," Wilson said. "Hot goalie and right now let's keep the
wind in the sail as long as we can. We've got two good goalies, one is on fire so we'll go a little longer with him."
They'll go longer with Turco, though Wilson said that doesn't mean that Ed Belfour has lost his starting job.
"Nobody's dropped him off the No. 1 status on this team at all," Wilson said.
Belfour, who last played last Thursday in Vancouver and was replaced by Turco in the first period, said that Wilson had spoken
with him before practice about his intentions for Wednesday's game and for the future.
He also said that he understood the naming of Turco as Wednesday's starter based on Turco's play of late.
"The team's playing very well right now and Marty's played well," Belfour said. "I talked with Rick about it, we both said that it's
good for the team and we're going to stick with it and ride it. Rick's been real honest with me, we have a good relationship and
I appreciate the honesty from him.
"Right now we're winning, that's the main thing. We want to make the playoffs, that's our first priority. I've played a long time
and I've been in situations where you have to go with a roll. Marty's playing well right now and the team's playing well for him.
That's a positive for our team and it's going to help us make the playoffs."
For Turco, who went more than a month between starts before getting the nod Saturday in Colorado, three in a row is a
welcome challenge.
"I just wanted to be ready when my chance came along," he said. "It feels good to be prepared and to work hard and to get
the chance to play."
While the goaltending decision is made for Wednesday, the status of Stars center Mike Modano is still uncertain following the
knee injury he sustained during Sunday's victory against San Jose.
Modano received treatment again Tuesday morning and skated alone for 15 minutes. Wilson said his chances of playing were
better than 50/50.
"If he comes back tomorrow without any swelling, he could come back tomorrow," Wilson said.
this from Stars official site
Turco gets his third straight start
by J. Douglas Foster
As important as the two weekend victories against Colorado and San Jose were, the Stars don't have to look long at the
Western Conference standings to realize that Wednesday's tilt with Los Angeles, most likely, carries even more weight.
After all the Stars, with a game in hand on the Kings, stand one point back of Wednesday's foe for second place in the Pacific
Division. Simply put, a victory by Dallas would help the Stars leapfrog the Kings into second, and into sole possession of sixth
place in the Western Conference.
"They're all big games right now," Stars captain Derian Hatcher said. "Anytime we play LA, Vancouver, San Jose. ?any of
these teams. They're all going to be big games."
With that in mind, Stars coach Rick Wilson has decided to ride the hot goaltender, announcing Tuesday morning that
second-year man Marty Turco will get the start in goal for Dallas against the Kings.
It's Turco's third consecutive start and will be the fifth consecutive game in which he has seen action. Since the Olympic break,
Turco is 3-0 with a 1.26 goals-against average, and has a 1.06 goals-against average in the three victories.
He has also turned in a .947 save percentage, another number which helped him win this week's NHL Player of the Week
award.
"He's playing well and it seemed like the right thing to do for the team," Wilson said. "Hot goalie and right now let's keep the
wind in the sail as long as we can. We've got two good goalies, one is on fire so we'll go a little longer with him."
They'll go longer with Turco, though Wilson said that doesn't mean that Ed Belfour has lost his starting job.
"Nobody's dropped him off the No. 1 status on this team at all," Wilson said.
Belfour, who last played last Thursday in Vancouver and was replaced by Turco in the first period, said that Wilson had spoken
with him before practice about his intentions for Wednesday's game and for the future.
He also said that he understood the naming of Turco as Wednesday's starter based on Turco's play of late.
"The team's playing very well right now and Marty's played well," Belfour said. "I talked with Rick about it, we both said that it's
good for the team and we're going to stick with it and ride it. Rick's been real honest with me, we have a good relationship and
I appreciate the honesty from him.
"Right now we're winning, that's the main thing. We want to make the playoffs, that's our first priority. I've played a long time
and I've been in situations where you have to go with a roll. Marty's playing well right now and the team's playing well for him.
That's a positive for our team and it's going to help us make the playoffs."
For Turco, who went more than a month between starts before getting the nod Saturday in Colorado, three in a row is a
welcome challenge.
"I just wanted to be ready when my chance came along," he said. "It feels good to be prepared and to work hard and to get
the chance to play."
While the goaltending decision is made for Wednesday, the status of Stars center Mike Modano is still uncertain following the
knee injury he sustained during Sunday's victory against San Jose.
Modano received treatment again Tuesday morning and skated alone for 15 minutes. Wilson said his chances of playing were
better than 50/50.
"If he comes back tomorrow without any swelling, he could come back tomorrow," Wilson said.
