Game Recap

DALLAS 1, NASHVILLE 0 NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Ticker) -- After a rare game off, Ed Belfour returned to the net and produced a familiar result. Belfour turned aside 24 shots for his league-leading fifth shutout and Brenden Morrow tallied with 4:05 left in the opening period to lift the Dallas Stars to a 1-0 triumph over the Nashville Predators. Belfour made nine saves in the first and third periods and six in the second for his fourth shutout in seven games this month. The 35-year-old has 54 career shutouts, tops among active goalies and tied for 14th all-time with Bernie Parent and Ed Giacomin. "I'm seeing the puck better and moving around better," Belfour said. "The team is playing a lot better defensively in front of me. That's the kind of hockey game we want to play night after night. We're playing tight defensively and that's helping us win games." Jamie Langenbrunner set up the only goal, skating through the slot and taking a shot that goaltender Tomas Vokoun stopped with his right pad. The rebound went to the top left crease where Morrow knocked it past Vokoun for his sixth goal. "I saw Langenbrunner shoot it and I went crashing to the net," Morrow said. "The puck fell on my stick and I took a whack at it. It's nice to have Eddie back there. Sometimes all we need is one goal to get the win." Morrow also scored in Friday's 1-0 win over the Detroit Red Wings when Belfour made 33 saves. "We were outplayed at the start," Dallas coach Ken Hitchcock said. "The goal by Morrow gave us the momentum we needed." "Belfour is playing great. To me we are relying on him too much right now. A 1-0 lead is great, but we need to initiate more offense. Nashville played a lot more physical on the defensive end and that kept down our chances." Vokoun, who also had 24 saves, made his 11th straight start, setting a Nashville record. "Dallas does a great job," Nashville coach Barry Trotz said. "They control the neutral zone very well. They weren't even trying to score a goal in the third period, they were defending the whole time." Nashville's best scoring opportunity came just two minutes into the game. Rookie Scott Hartnell cut through the slot and took a shot that Belfour stopped with an outstretched right pad. Belfour was on the ice and the puck fell to the top of the crease, but Hartnell's second attempt rang off the goalpost. Dallas outshot Nashville 12-6 in the second period and nearly doubled its lead in the closing minutes. But Mike Modano hit the post after skating to the top of the left faceoff circle on a break. Vokoun went to the bench for an extra attacker with just over a minute remaining. Belfour blocked a hard shot by Kimmo Timonen with 59 seconds left. ----------------------------- Dallas 1 0 0--1 Nashville 0 0 0--0 ----------------------------- FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, Dallas, Morrow 6 (Langenbrunner, Nieuwendyk), 15:55. Penalties: Muller, Dal (elbowing), 2:48; D Berehowsky, Nas (roughing), 17:28; Langenbrunner, Dal (roughing), 17:28. SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: Hulse, Nas (high sticking), 1:25; Sydor, Dal (tripping), 5:50; Langenbrunner, Dal (hooking), 8:29; Myhres, Nas (hooking), 14:24; T Bouck, Dal (hooking), 16:39. THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: Muller, Dal (interference), 19:37. Shots on goal: --------------------------------- Dallas 6 12 7--25 Nashville 9 6 9--24 --------------------------------- Power-play Conversions: Dal - 0 of 2, Nas - 0 of 5. Goalies: Dallas, Belfour (24 shots, 24 saves; record: 9-5-3). Nashville, Vokoun (25, 24; record: 4-7-3). A:14,517. Referees: Ohalloran, Pollock. Linesmen: Barton, Orourke.