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May 16--FRISCO -- If Marty Turco is worried about dealing with his demons in Detroit for Game 5 on Saturday, he has plenty of help from his friends.
Heck, maybe the players should all get together and hold a seminar on why Turco can't seem to get a victory at Joe Louis Arena.
"Everybody knows that Marty's had a difficult time in Detroit," said center Steve Ott, unafraid to state the obvious about Turco's 0-9-2 record on the road against the Red Wings. "That's no secret."
So, since it's no secret, Ott said he believes Turco and his teammates need to turn an obstacle into an opportunity.
"Marty's an extremely competitive goalie, and I think this sets up great for him," Ott said. "He wants that win probably more than anybody -- get that monkey off his back. And getting a win there would be huge for his confidence and the team's, as well. ... So, really, what better time than now?"
That makes sense for a couple of reasons.
One, the Stars could gain a huge amount of momentum by beating the Red Wings in Detroit and forcing Game 6 in their best-of-7 Western Conference finals series. They could put a kernel of doubt into the minds of the best team in the NHL, make the Red Wings start thinking that maybe, just maybe, they could become the third team in NHL history to allow an opponent to come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win.
And two, the season is over if the Stars lose.
That's something Turco has been considering, he said. Dallas exited the playoffs in the first round for three consecutive seasons before this one, and Turco took a fair share of the blame. He said the team has worked hard to build a different attitude.
"Over the last couple of days, we've been talking about doing the right things," he said. "I think in years prior, we've not entirely talked about the right things. We now have a firm grasp on how to act, how we need to play, how we're going to do it -- and it's together. It's amazing the things you can do when you bond together."
That's what the Stars were emphasizing as they rested Thursday. As much as the battle is Turco's, they said they wanted to help lift the load.
"First and foremost -- and Marty would say this -- they want to win for the group, they don't want to win for Marty," Stars coach Dave Tippett explained. "You can look at the past, like Colorado when they got Ray Bourque. There are certain situations that act as inner motivation. But in the end, the team trumps any individual."
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