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Monday, May 18, 1998

Modano the defensive star? Hatcher the offensive star? What gives?

By CHARLES RICHARDS / Associated Press Writer

DALLAS (AP) -- Mike Modano is expected to be the offensive hero and Derian Hatcher the defensive star.

So why the reversal of roles in Dallas' 2-1 victory over Edmonton Saturday night that clinched a berth in the Western Conference finals for the Stars?

Defense was the difference for the Stars in avenging last year's playoff loss to the Oilers, and Modano led the way, playing as well on defense as he has played in a career noted for offensive prowess.

"We felt that Doug Weight was the head of the snake and that everybody offensively fed off him," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We sacrificed Mike Modano for this series, thinking we'd get enough goals from other people. And from a defensive standpoint, the gamble paid off."

Hitchcock told his offensive star that if he broke even with Weight, the Stars had a good chance to win the series.

Modano did better than break even. He finished with four assists in the five games. Weight had only one point, a power-play goal when his team had a two-man advantage in Game 2.

"That's what I've been doing all season," Modano said. "But I was surprised they wanted that matchup in Edmonton, too. It played into our hands. I've gotten a lot of thrills about playing good defensive hockey, even changing my game a little to try and play a better all-around game."

When the Stars and Oilers were finished Saturday night, they had produced the lowest-scoring five-game playoff series in 70 years of Stanley Cup hockey.

Only 14 goals were scored in the series. Stars goalie Ed Belfour stopped 119 of 123 shots.

"That was Dallas Stars hockey," Hatcher said. "That's the way we played all year. Even in games where we gave them a lot of shots, we didn't give them any real scoring chances."

Hatcher, Dallas' star defenseman, delivered four bone-crushing hits and keyed the Stars' penalty-killing unit. But he also broke a scoreless tie with a goal from close range that beat Curtis Joseph for a 1-0 lead with only 4.7 seconds left in the first period Saturday night.

With the Stars on the power play, Hitchcock played a hunch and put Hatcher on the right point -- an uncharacteristic move.

Hitchcock said he wanted a simpler game on the power play, which finished 2-for-32 in the series. That left Hatcher skating in on the right side after Modano had slipped through the slot taking the attention of two Oilers before dishing the puck.

"I knew he (Modano) saw me, because he sees everything on the ice," Hatcher said. "... So I just kept going toward the goal. I tried to be patient with it."

Hatcher crept in from the right point, took the pass from Modano and snapped the puck over Joseph's left shoulder.

"I practice that shot all the time in practice," Hatcher said. "That was the first time I got to use it in seven years."

"It was a good shot because I didn't give him anything," Joseph said. "Actually, it hit my shoulder.

"It just didn't seem like we got one break the whole series. We never got a nice bounce or a key turnover that could have gotten us started.

Edmonton was only 1-for-29 on the power play in the series.

"Our game is a disciplined, defensive game," Hatcher said.

"We're not going to run and gun with you. What you saw in this series defensively is who we are. We're not going to give you a lot of chances."

In five games, the Stars and Belfour allowed only five goals, one an empty-netter. That had been accomplished in an NHL five-game series three times before -- by the New York Rangers in 1928, the Boston Bruins in 1995 and the New Jersey Devils in 1997.

"It feels like we're ... the team we were built to be," Modano said.

Defenseman Darryl Sydor added:

"I've only been here 2-1/2 years, but this is exactly where we're supposed to be. We get defense from the goaltender, from the defensemen and from the forwards. That's what won this series."