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Wednesday, Mar. 29 7:00pm ET
Bure spoils Belfour's shutout bid | |||||
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BOX SCORE
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) -- The Dallas Stars were unfazed by the absence of injured captain Mike Modano. Scott Thornton scored a pair of goals and Ed Belfour stopped 36 shots Wednesday night as the Stars clinched their fourth straight Pacific Division title, winning 4-1 over the Florida Panthers. "We heard they wanted to use us as a measuring stick to see how they stand up," said Thornton, who returned after a two-game suspension. "We looked at that as a challenge and we wanted to be ready. I don't know if we're making any kind of statement or not, all I know is we're focused and gearing up for the playoffs." Modano, who has 20 goals in his last 29 games, has a hip flexor injury and was held out for precautionary measures. Florida lost for the first time in four games. The Stars, unbeaten in seven road contests, have six wins in eight contests (6-1-1). Dallas has won an NHL-record 34 straight road games when scoring at least three goals. "They're Stanley Cup champions," Florida's Todd Simpson said. "They played a solid game and we never got it going. I think we learned we've got a little ways to go." Belfour was not expected to start because of a court hearing that resulted from his March 8 arrest for assault and resisting arrest. The Panthers got scoring chances, but Belfour was up to the task nearly every time, including a nice glove save on Pavel Bure in the second. Bure scored on a rebound off a Ray Whitney shot with 11:14 to play -- extending his point-scoring streak to nine games -- ending Belfour's bid for his 50th career shutout. "You definitely want to be ready for him," Belfour said of the league's leading goal scorer. "You want to shut him down and limit his scoring chances. I enjoy playing against the best and meeting the challenge." The Stars went up 1-0 in a fight-filled first period. Joe Nieuwendyk scored on the power play just 2:42 in after Florida's Mike Sillinger was sent off for interference. Nieuwendyk's shot from the right circle beat Trevor Kidd on the stick side. The Stars added a pair of goals 59 seconds apart in the second to take command. Guy Carbonneau scored his 10th when his shot from the left circle hit Kidd's pads and trickled in at 12:24. Thornton made it 3-0 when he flicked the puck in behind Kidd. "It was a tough night out there," Kidd said. It was made tougher by the poor condition of the ice, something both teams complained about after the game. Bure and Mark Parrish had shots hit the goal posts in the second period as well. The last time the teams met, Dec. 10 at Dallas, Florida also fell behind 3-0 but rallied to tie it. The Panthers were then beaten by Jamie Langenbrunner's late goal. There would be no comeback in the rematch. Thornton added his second goal at 4:32 of the third and Brett Hull broke a two-game scoreless streak with three assists. Stars defenseman Sergei Zubov sprained his right knee in a third period collision with Panthers defenseman Bret Hedican. "He'll certainly be ready for the playoffs," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. "But I don't know if he'll play any more games for the rest of the year." Dallas has won five of six meetings between the clubs. "We've been improving each time out over our last 15 games," Belfour said. "I think it's our way of getting revved up going into the playoffs." | ALSO SEE NHL Scoreboard Dallas Clubhouse Florida Clubhouse RECAPS Dallas 4 Florida 1 AUDIO/VIDEO   Scott Thornton scores one of his two goals.avi: 662 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Pavel Bure scores off the rebound.avi: 578 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Guy Carbonneau beats Trevor Kiddavi: 714 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1   Scott Thornton says the Stars' game plan is the key to their success.wav: 126 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6   | |||||