Stars’ Response to Rivals Is to Stand Pat

The Detroit Red Wings added experience, depth and scoring punch last Tuesday by acquiring Wendel Clark, Ulf Samuelsson, Chris Chelios and Bill Ranford. The Colorado Avalanche, already buoyed by the Theo Fleury trade, added the nasty edge and fiery spirit of Dale Hunter.

The Dallas Stars acquired center Derek Plante from the Buffalo Sabres and didn’t even play him in their next game.

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” defenseman Craig Ludwig said of the Stars’ modest moves. “Up to that point, we had lost 14 games. Detroit needed a spark and some life. When you have the type of chemistry we have, you don’t want to disturb it. We’re confident in the chemistry we have here, and that’s been proven over the last couple of years.”

Dallas’ deal for Plante and reacquisition of left wing Benoit Hogue a few days earlier are not the pivotal moments in a championship season. But the Stars say they didn’t feel compelled to respond to Colorado or Detroit.

“Our feeling was, we couldn’t control what was happening around us,” Doug Armstrong, the assistant to Dallas General Manager Bob Gainey, said of rivals’ deals. “Bob had a meeting with the coaches, and their feeling was, we needed to upgrade our speed and add depth at left wing, and we feel we did that.

“There’s no question the Red Wings improved their team, but we’re comfortable with our team. The players had been playing well before the deadline. . . . If you look back at how this team was assembled, the first year [Gainey was general manager and not also coaching] we added Pat Verbeek. Then Eddie Belfour and Brett Hull. But the core of our team is younger, in their mid-20s. Look at Mike Modano and our top four defensemen: Derian Hatcher, Darryl Sydor, Sergei Zubov and Richard Matvichuk. We feel strongly they can get the job done.”

Although they’re on their way to a second consecutive Presidents’ Trophy for the best regular-season point total, the Stars have slowed recently. Their 4-3-2 record since March 12 is the closest they’ve come to a slump, a downturn that can be attributed to fatigue and the lack of a real challenge.

“It’s hard to figure out what it is,” Modano said. “We’re getting into areas to score goals, but offensively it’s been a struggle, and that’s going to happen. You’ve got to find ways to get out of it. If you’re struggling to score goals, you’ve got to find ways to win, 1-0.”

That said, Modano still has confidence in his team and understands why the Red Wings made headlines on deadline day.

“A lot of the moves they made, they were looking at this year and next year,” Modano said. “The Red Wings had to make moves because [Nicklas] Lidstrom may go back to Sweden and [Brent] Gilchrist has been injured. They kind of filled holes and did a good job covering the bases and maneuvering themselves into good possibilities.”

FLAMES STILL BURNING

The battle of Alberta has a new meaning for the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames.

Instead of fighting for division or conference titles, as they did in the 1980s, they’re competing for the last Western Conference playoff berth.

“It’s healthy for both franchises,” Flame General Manager Al Coates said.

In truth, it’s a comedown for the Oilers, who upset the Avalanche in the first round last spring and have struggled this season. But it’s a pleasant surprise for the Flames, who are defying predictions that they would fall apart after they traded Fleury for left wing Rene Corbet, tough defenseman Wade Belak and the rights to promising junior defenseman Robyn Regehr.

“Most people thought we’d go right in the tank after the trade,” Coates said. “The day we did it, we told players this is their team and there would be a greater percentage of ice time available. We’ve played really well.”

For the Flames, who are 7-5-1 since trading Fleury and 13-7-7 since the All-Star break, making the playoffs would boost the confidence of youngsters Cory Stillman (24 goals, 49 points), Valeri Bure (23 goals, 48 points) and Jarome Iginla (24 goals, 44 points), who are the team’s future.

“When you put a lot of time and effort into having a season and you accomplish something against extremely high odds, it’s rewarding,” Coates said. “This is a young team and it will only get better with playoff experience. We’ve been playing playoff games the last 45 games, really.”

The Flames and Oilers each have five home games and four road games left, and they meet three times in the last 11 days of the season.

THE OLD COLLEGE TRY

Mighty Duck left wing Paul Kariya was delighted to see his alma mater, Maine, advance to the NCAA Frozen Four on Thursday and Saturday at the Arrowhead Pond. But Kariya was hesitant to pick his former team to win.

“I don’t want to jinx Maine,” he said. “It’s going to be a good tournament. It’s exciting hockey and the fans will enjoy it.”

In Thursday’s 1 p.m. opener, third-seeded Maine will play Boston College, which lost last year’s final to Michigan and beat Northern Michigan and favored North Dakota in the West Regional to make this year’s Frozen Four.

“I thought our goaltender, Scott Clemmensen, was just terrific,” Boston College Coach Jerry York said Monday. “He really shut down North Dakota. I liked the way our team adapted to the tight-checking, physical game we had with Northern and the much more wide-open game we had with North Dakota. . . . We’re playing the best hockey of our year.”

In the other semifinal, top-seeded New Hampshire will face Michigan State at 6 p.m. The winners will play Saturday at 4:30 p.m. for the national title. Three of the semifinalists are from the Hockey East Conference, the first time that has happened since the CCHA had three teams in the Final Four in 1992.

Thursday’s game will be the second successive Final Four appearance for New Hampshire Coach Dick Umile and the seventh in a 33-year career for Michigan State’s Ron Mason, who leads college coaches with 837 victories.

“I think it’s great we’re going West,” Umile said of playing in an area that has no major college hockey. “The sport is taking off nationally and a lot of youth hockey is being played in Los Angeles.”

DUCKING THE ISSUE

Mighty Duck General Manager Pierre Gauthier said he was aware that Peter Zezel had a family problem but didn’t immediately know Zezel wouldn’t report after the Vancouver Canucks traded him to the Ducks. But was Zezel the best Gauthier could do in trying to solidify the Ducks up the middle?

Vincent Damphousse would have looked good in a Duck uniform with his playoff experience, good faceoff skills and solid two-way play, but he went from the Montreal Canadiens to the San Jose Sharks for second- and fifth-round draft picks. The Ducks don’t like to trade picks and didn’t want to rent a player who is eligible for unrestricted free agency July 1, but Damphousse was worth an exception.

SLAP SHOTS

Pavel Bure had to undergo surgery again Monday, ending his season--and the Panthers’ faint playoff hopes. He had tried skating last week but his right knee continued to swell and cause him pain.

The Canadiens, Washington Capitals and Chicago Blackhawks, who traded their captains on deadline day, won’t appoint replacements until next season. In the meantime, several players on each team will wear the A of alternate captains. . . . Aki Berg, who couldn’t come to terms with the Kings this season and stayed in Finland to play for TPS, knocked top draft prospect Jani Rita out of the Finnish League playoffs with an elbow last week. Rita suffered a concussion and a ruptured kidney, but his career is not in jeopardy. He’s the third player Berg has knocked out of the lineup this season.

Florida Panther rookie Mark Parrish scored his 20th goal Sunday, triggering a $325,000 bonus clause in his contract. The next team dinner is on him. . . . The Sharks are among the few teams undeterred by the low returns of free agents Steve Duchesne, Doug Gilmour and Ron Francis and still are willing to venture into free agency. They have cleared money in their budget to pursue free agents such as Fleury, and they may not have much competition.

Will Glen Sather’s reputation as a genius be tarnished if the Oilers miss the playoffs? Coach Ron Low has been heavily criticized, but Sather should be held accountable too. The Oilers’ goaltending was weak and Tommy Salo, acquired from the New York Islanders shortly before the deadline, may not be the answer. . . . A judge’s ruling last week that the Pittsburgh Penguins are bound to their Civic Arena lease through 2007 and can’t discuss moving the team with any out-of-town interests is a blow to the franchise’s future. A key provision of Mario Lemieux’s reorganization plan was a new lease that would reduce the rent of about $6 million. If landlord SMG won’t renegotiate, taking over the team will be a losing proposition.