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The pain in Stars wing Brenden Morrow's lower left leg has a familiar feel to it.
In Game 1 of the 2000 Western Conference Finals, Morrow suffered a cracked lower
left fibula.
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Like seemingly all hockey players, he taped it up and played.
So it shouldn't come as any surprise when Morrow said Monday he is preparing
to play in the Stars' regular-season opener Wednesday despite the bone bruise
in the same area. Ticketmaster
Should he not be able to play, the Stars' celebrated depth at forward will come
to use, most likely increasing the role for Morrow's clone, rookie Steve Ott.
"We'll go [this morning], and see how it feels," Morrow said. "I
would say there is better than a 50-50 chance I'll play."
Morrow suffered the bruise early in the first period of Saturday's preseason
finale when a slap shot from Stars defenseman Philippe Boucher hit his lower
left leg.
X-rays taken Sunday were negative, and the swelling began to subside Monday.
There was no team practice Sunday, and Morrow did not attempt to practice Monday.
He said he will try to skate and practice with the team this morning, and if
all goes well, he's a go for Wednesday against the Mighty Ducks. Ticketmaster
"The pain is pretty tolerable. I think it's a pretty deep bone bruise,"
Morrow said. "There is pressure on one spot. I am preparing myself to play."
While Morrow might not be a Mike Modano, Bill Guerin or a 30-goal scorer, his
loss would be significant for most teams.
Coming off a season in which he scored 21 goals and added 22 assists in 71 games,
Morrow developed into the black-and-blue, crease-crashing player who could excel
on the top, second or third lines. Ticketmaster
But with a team featuring enough forwards to field four competent lines, the
loss of Morrow for a game or two doesn't cause wide-spread panic.
"We feel very comfortable with our depth," Stars coach Dave Tippett
said. "With our depth at forward, it could be any number of players that
jump in and take those minutes depending on how we want to set up our lineup."
In true Tippett form, the multi-million dollar secret of how he wants to set
up his lineup is for him to know "and Anaheim to find out."
But the most likely candidate to assume Morrow's role for one game or a stretch
of games is Ott. Ticketmaster
Stars general manager Doug Armstrong has compared the 21-year-old's game and
progress to Morrow's at the same point in their careers. And both share the
same in-your-face styles that usually leave opponents irritated and their own
faces bruised and cut.
So even if the pain in Morrow's leg doesn't go away quickly, his loss from the
lineup shouldn't be too painful for the Stars.
Briefly
• The Stars have bought out wing Claude Lemieux's contract, and he is
no longer with the club. They have agreed to pay 90 percent of the Lemieux's
$2.5 million salary. Ticketmaster
• Rookie defenseman Trevor Daley was sent to minor league Utah, but his
performance this preseason suggests he will be back with the Stars at some point
during the season.
• Las Vegas has released odds on the Stanley Cup winners. The Colorado
Avalanche was set at 7 to 2; the Stars came in at 8 to 1.