"It was a beautifully sloppy experience, the kind of game the Dallas Stars probably feared the most to start the season, and yet one that might be the best thing that could have happened to a team in transition.Sure, a 4-3 overtime victory against the New Jersey Devils is a good thing.But a 4-3 overtime victory in which the Stars overcame an early 2-0 deficit and got near-heroic performances from their leaders Friday night... well, that could be something that's looked back upon as great."I thought our leaders held us together," Stars coach Marc Crawford said. "When they stay on task, that means everything. You can say anything you want until you're blue in the face as a coach, but if your leaders are believing it, that's when you really start to cook with gas."Loui Eriksson roofed a 2-on-1 breakaway shot over Martin Brodeur at 1:36 of overtime to give the Stars two points in the standings and their first season-opening win in the last four years.Brad Richards, Brenden Morrow and Mike Ribeiro led the top two lines, and Stephane Robidas and Karlis Skrastins were rocks for a stuttering defense. That helped give confidence to younger players such as Eriksson, James Neal, Matt Niskanen and Nicklas Grossman. The end result was not only a strong mix of talents, but also the bonding of a team."We all worked hard over the summer, so I think everyone is about as physically ready as they can be to start the season," said Morrow, who had a huge goal to stop the bleeding in the first period. "But it's the mind games that are the toughest to understand and to learn, and I think we're learning that as a group."" http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/10/08/2532906/dallas-stars-storm-back-for-overtime.html
