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Thank those lucky Stars Hull sets up another triple-overtime winner
Posted: Friday June 09, 2000 04:16 AM
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Brett Hull set up this overtime winner, not to win the Stanley Cup but to prevent the New Jersey Devils from taking it away. Mike Modano deflected in Hull's shot for his first goal of the finals early Friday morning as the Stars extended the best-of-seven series to a sixth game with a 1-0 victory over the Devils. "We thought if we got this tonight, we would come back here Monday night," Modano said. When it ended 6:21 into the third overtime, it was the longest scoreless game in the finals and fourth longest overall. Hull won the Cup for the Stars last year, eliminating the Buffalo Sabres in six games, when he scored from the crease. It was a goal that fans in Buffalo are still screaming shouldn't have counted. Ed Belfour, who was routed in the first game of this series, wouldn't allow any pucks to get past him this time. His cold cured, Belfour rebounded from his six-goal shelling to stop all 48 New Jersey shots. "Eddie played well, he's a very proud person," Mike Keane said. "The whole team's not going to give this thing up early. We know the Cup is in the building, and until they win, it's ours." Belfour won nine straight games following Dallas playoff defeats until New Jersey won consecutive contests at Reunion Arena to take a commanding series lead. "It always seems we come up big when the time is needed," Modano said. "Guys seem to rally, we seem to support each other. We don't get down."
The Stars have won two of the three games played at Continental Airlines Arena and return home for Game 6 Saturday night. New Jersey won Games 3 and 4 at Dallas and is 9-2 on the road. "It's a big momentum change," Modano said. "I think we all feel and finally realize what we have to do and how we have to play to beat these guys." Only once has a team rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the finals to win the Cup. The Stars became just the 10th club to survive the fifth game. As the game wore on, the Stars seemed to be the fresher team, getting more of the better chances and spending large amounts of time in the New Jersey end. "I think we felt some chances were coming and we were getting some good play down low," Modano said. "We were able to wear them out a little bit." The scoring play came as Dallas worked the puck in the offensive zone. Hull sent a shot toward the net from the right point. Modano got his stick on it in midair and put it between the pads of Martin Brodeur. "It was kind of towards the end of a shift," Modano said. "It was just developing nicely. They were able to get it to Jere [Lehtinen] and Jere to Brett and it seemed that everybody shifted to that end of the ice. "His first attempt I think hit his shin or his stick, and he stuck with the play. As it came through the next time I was able to get my stick on it. It hit the shaft and went in."
Dallas could get a boost for Game 6 as Jamie Langenbrunner might
be able to test his injured knee again, which would strengthen
another Stars line.
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