DULUTH, Ga. -- An apologetic Ed Belfour returned to the
Dallas Stars on Tuesday, admitting his temper got the best of him
again but also saying he probably avoided a more serious blowup by
leaving the team.
| |  | | | Belfour |
The goaltender's two-day-old suspension was lifted after he met
with coach Ken Hitchcock, general manager Bob Gainey and assistant
GM Doug Armstrong in Atlanta, where the Stars play the Thrashers on
Wednesday night.
Belfour also discussed his actions with a delegation of the
team's leading players, including captain Derian Hatcher, Mike
Modano and Brett Hull, clearing the way for the goalie to take part
in an afternoon practice at the Thrashers' suburban training
facility.
"Everybody knows I'm emotional. I've got a pretty good
temper," Belfour said after practice. "In certain situations,
it's better for me to walk away instead of taking it face on."
Hitchcock's decision to use backup Marty Turco on Saturday in
Boston triggered a blowup in which Belfour refused to practice,
then left the team and flew back to Dallas. He was suspended
indefinitely on Sunday.
On Monday, after tensions had cooled, Belfour flew to Atlanta
and arranged a meeting that led to his return.
"It's definitely good to be back with the guys," he said.
"The main thing was a chance to sit down, talk about it and move
forward."
Hitchcock said he needs to do a better job of handling Belfour's
fragile psyche.
"Some people are low maintenance. Some people are high
maintenance," the coach said. "He's a high-maintenance person
because he's such a perfectionist."
Sounding like a psychiatrist, Hitchcock said highly competitive
athletes such as Belfour decide between "fight or flight" when
confronted with an objectionable situation. The coach blamed
himself for letting the situation fester for several months without
recognizing the warning signs.
"I don't like what happened. But in Ed's mind, the alternative
would have been much worse," Hitchcock said. "I could have gotten
ugly, where you had coaches and players swearing and yelling all
over the place. It could have gone on for days and days until
everything fell apart."
In Belfour's absence, the 25-year-old Turco made 33 saves in
Saturday's 4-0 victory over Boston and followed that Monday night
with a 37-save effort in a 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers,
his 11th NHL game.
Turco will start again when the Stars play the Thrashers.
Belfour will return to action Friday night, when Dallas returns
home to play the Detroit Red Wings.
Hitchcock said he wasn't punishing Belfour but merely wanted to
give him an extra practice or two to regain his timing.
"We've gotten back to ground zero," Hitchcock said. "Now, the
building process can begin."
This was the second off-ice trouble in 10 months for the
35-year-old Belfour, who has tried hard to escape the nickname of
"Crazy Eddie" he earned in his younger, wilder days.
Last spring, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of
resisting arrest during a fight at a Dallas hotel, He was placed on
probation for two years, fined $3,000 and ordered to visit two area
high schools to warn about alcohol abuse. He also was enrolled in
the NHL's substance-abuse program.
"I made a mistake," Belfour said of his latest trouble. "I
overreacted and maybe the coach overreacted a little bit, but I
should have acted better than that."
He apologized to his teammates, who were baffled by his
abandonment.
"Obviously something happened between Eddie and Hitch that I
don't think anyone in this room knew about," Hatcher said. "From
what I understand it's been ongoing."
Belfour's actions were particularly troubling in a sport where
supporting teammates is honored and expected.
"Those are my teammates, my brothers," Belfour said. "Anytime
you leave them like that, you're creating a situation where you
didn't think about what's best for them. I was a little emotional.
I wasn't thinking straight."
The Stars, second in the Pacific Division behind San Jose, were
determined to move beyond the problem.
"Once we're on the ice, all that stuff is forgotten about and
you try and win the game," Modano said. "The players understand
that life goes on."
The 35-year-old Belfour, whose strong goaltending carried the
Stars to their first Stanley Cup title in 1999, said he never
considered retirement.
"It was miscommunication," Belfour said. "That's all it came down to."
|
|
ALSO SEE
Amid Belfour dispute, Stars' Turco nets first career shutout
AUDIO VIDEO
 Ed Belfour realizes his actions were not best for the team?
wav: 165 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Stars coach Ken Hitchcock says there are issues that need to be cleared up.
wav: 145 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
|
