Dallas Coach Still Has Revenge in Mind

A restless night did nothing to cool Dallas Coach Ken Hitchcock’s anger over what he believes were cheap shots by the Ducks against three of his top players Saturday.

Dallas center Mike Modano, who was knocked into the boards by defenseman Ruslan Salei, suffered a concussion, a sprained neck and a broken nose. Modano was released from a Dallas-area hospital Sunday morning.

Center Joe Nieuwendyk was uninjured when Duck defenseman Pascal Trepanier slammed him into the glass. Defenseman Darryl Sydor has a broken left eye socket after Duck enforcer Jim McKenzie pounded on him during a fight that followed the hit on Nieuwendyk.

Modano and Sydor are out indefinitely, according to Hitchcock, who again vowed revenge on the ice. The teams play Friday at the Arrowhead Pond.

“They bought themselves a response from our team that has to be made,” Hitchcock said. “I’ve never seen anything in my life like that hit on Modano. I’ve never seen anything in my coaching career that scary.”

Reminded of Dallas defenseman Derian Hatcher’s hit last season that broke the jaw of Phoenix center Jeremy Roenick, Hitchcock said, “I’m not getting into that.”

Duck Coach Craig Hartsburg repeated his statements of Saturday, calling Modano’s injury an accident. He refused to get into a war of words with Hitchcock.

“It’s up to the league to make sure this doesn’t turn into all-star wrestling,” Hartsburg said. Asked if he expected Salei to be suspended, he said, “It’s up to the league to look at it. He’s playing [Tuesday against Phoenix] until somebody tells me something different.”