Stars End Three Game Losing Streak in Disjointed Affair

That was not pretty.

But when you come into any game with a three game losing streak, you worry about simply doing what it takes to get the two points. The aesthetics can come later.

Which is really a good thing because the Stars looked horrid tonight in their own zone from the goaltender on out. Against just about any other team in the league, they probably would have lost.

The lapses in the defensive coverage continued and Turco was less than stellar in the net tonight in surrendering three goals on the night. The last of which came off an almost comical misplay of the puck that ended up in the back of the net after Kyle Moulsen, who lifted Turco's stick and stole the puck, fed Frans Nielsen to give the Isles a short lived 3-2 lead.

It was short lived because the Islanders must have been so busy admiring the goal that they allowed Brenden Morrow to setup in his office just outside the goal mouth and tie the game 24 seconds later.

The Islanders must have been so gobsmacked that Turco had basically handed them a 3-2 lead when he misplayed a puck in the 2nd period that they put on an exhibition of horrible defensive coverage in their own zone and allowed Brenden Morrow to tie the game back up just 24 seconds later.

Then eight minutes later, they forgot to cover Brad Richards in their own zone on a rush up ice. Loui Eriksson, who tied the game early in the second with a nice wrister under the bar, was able to find Richards who slid the puck past a sprawling Rick DiPietro, who was playing in his first NHL game in 371 days, for what turned out to be the game winner.

I'm still trying to figure that last part out. Because the Stars really had no business winning this game in regulation. Neither team did for that matter.

With about a minute left, the puck was fed over to the top pick in last June's draft, John Tavares. The rookie out of Oakville, Ontario had not one chance, but two primo scoring chances to tie the game up and send it into OT. But a backhander rang off the post behind Turco and out.

And when you boil this one down, it's pretty much the reason the Stars won and the Isles didn't. The Islanders defensive lapses ended up in their own net in the second period. The Stars defensive lapses in the 2nd and 3rd simply rang off the post.

Again, don't worry about the aesthetics. Take the two points and be happy.

Also, be happy about the fact the Stars won 54% of their faceoffs tonight.

But don't be happy about the -2 that Matt Niskanen put up tonight. A few nights ago in New York, Marc Crawford threw him under the bus. Tonight, he was basically invisible.

Dallas will practice tomorrow morning before flying back out east to Columbus to play the Blue Jackets on Sunday. Which begs the question of why couldn't the NHL have just scheduled these two games to Columbus and Philly on the same road trip as their NY metro area jaunt at the beginning of this week.

But that's neither here nor there.