Stars president stirs the pot, but is wrong about Preds

	Bad blood between the Preds and Stars has bubbled since Mike Modano (center) said the NHL should fold Nashville's franchise. AP
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Hockey could use a few more men like Jim Lites.

Still seething 24 hours after a 3-2 loss on Saturday in Nashville, the president of the Dallas Stars lit into the Predators organization for, among other things, failing to acknowledge Mike Modano's 503rd career goal. The power-play marker, which cut Nashville's lead to 3-2 late in the game, set a new goal-scoring record for American-born players.

"Their owner, management, public relations people, coaching staff, I think they all failed the game," Lites told The Dallas Morning News. "It's because of people like Mike Modano that they even have a team in Nashville. He has helped pioneer the game in the South, and for him to be treated like that in a milestone moment ... it's just a horrible thing."

So kudos to Lites for sounding off. Not because he's right. In fact, he couldn't be more wrong. But give him his props for amping up the ill will between these potential playoff opponents. That's an element the league desperately needs more of.

Could Nashville have made an announcement over the arena PA about that goal and kept Lites off the soapbox? Sure. In fact, the Predators might have been inclined to say something were it not for the circumstances. More on that in a moment.

But despite Lites' protestations, the Predators were under no obligation. If it had been Modano's 500th goal, it might have been different. That's a recognized league milestone. Dallas gave its erstwhile captain his due when he hit that estimable mark last week against Philadelphia. In fact, the Stars organization and their fans showed their class when they honored Pittsburgh's Mark Recchi after he netted his 500th at the American Airlines Center in early January.

But the goal record for an American? That's about as relevant as Larry Walker surpassing Terry Puhl for career home runs by a Canadian. Or, to keep it in hockey terms, goals by a left wing. Or a right-handed shooter. Or a guy under 5-8. A qualifier like that makes for a nice local story, but for the out-of-market fan ... yawn.