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Monday, May 25, 1998

Stars lose to hot defense by Detroit

By C. BRYSON HULL

Associated Press

DALLAS - Defense carried the day for the Detroit Red Wings.

Holding the Dallas Stars to only 14 shots, the Red Wings beat the Stars 2-0 Sunday in the opening game of their Western Conference finals.

Chris Osgood benefitted from the Red Wings' suffocating defense to gain his fourth career playoff shutout. Martin Lapointe led the offense with a goal and an assist.

The Stars finished with the top point total in the regular season, but failed to show any of the offense that made them the Presidents' Trophy winner.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Red Wings got the early jump in the best-of-7 series which continues with Game 2 Tuesday at Reunion Arena.

Dallas applied early physical forechecking pressure to counter the Red Wings' rapid, short-pass transition game, but both teams could only manage a shot apiece in the first 10 minutes.

The Red Wings showed flashes of their rapid-fire attack in the first period, but were unable to connect on several one-time attempts.

The Stars' power play was ineffective early and 0-for-4 overall, managing only three shots while former Stars left wing Brent Gilchrist was sent off for goalie interference.

Dallas also had no shots during a 46-second two-man advantage, courtesy of a cross-checking penalty on Jamie Macoun at 10:27.

The Red Wings were shotless on their first power-play attempt, but scored on their third power play of the game. They went 1-for-6 overall.

Detroit capitalized on a four-on-three advantage just 57 seconds into the middle period, when Slava Kozlov slid a rebound into an open net for his fourth goal of the playoffs.

Stars goalie Ed Belfour, who stopped 21 of 23 shots, was caught out of position when Red Wings defender Nicklas Lidstrom's shot bounced off Lapointe's skate and landed to the right of the crease.

The Stars couldn't make Osgood pay for interfering with Modano at 10:33 of the second. With Kozlov in the penalty box, Osgood stonewalled a slap shot by Darryl Sydor from the left circle.

Detroit added another when Lapointe, assisted by Macoun and Bob Rouse, put a wrist shot past a screened Belfour for his sixth of the playoffs at 13:38.

Dallas couldn't mount much of an attack early in the third period, going 0 for 4 on shots in the first five minutes and turning the puck over several times. A thundering Mike Keane hit on Detroit's Darren McCarty helped energize the Stars, who responded with their best scoring chance of the game at 6:41.

Grant Marshall sent a slap shot in hard and low, but Osgood made a pad save and then snapped up Benoit Hogue's rebound attempt from the low circle.

Modano sent in a 20-foot wrist shot in with 8:30 left to play, and Osgood was again strong with a glove save.

Lapointe quickly countered on a two-on-one rush, but his slap shot from the right circle with 7:58 to play banged off of the left post.