USA DAWN: NEWS AND UPDATES

LM Otero/AP Photo Troy Brouwer , left, celebrates his goal with teammate Paul Stastny during the second period of Game 7 of their Western Conference semifinal series against the Stars in Dallas on Wednesday night. DALLAS — It was the pot that took turns moving from back burner to front all through the Western Conference semifinal, but it was always there on the stovetop, bubbling … Could Lindy Ruff find a warm body to give the Dallas Stars a consistent effort in goal? He thought he had. After being pulled from Game 2 and reinstalled as the starter from Game 4 onward, Kari Lehtonen had teased his coach. Made him believe again. And then came Game 7, and the pot boiled over. Lehtonen surrendered three first-period goals, all of them soft, and when his replacement, Antti Niemi, was beaten from the right wing by a David Backes slapshot 3:50 into the second, it was all over but the crying in Big D. It ended 6-1, Patrick Eaves scoring the Stars’ lone goal 5:15 into the t...

ST. LOUIS -- Alexander Steen's contribution to the St. Louis Blues in the playoffs could not be accurately measured in the box score -- until Tuesday night. Steen, who often draws the assignment of defending the opponent's top line, scored two goals, as did David Backes, to lead the Blues to a 6-1 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 3 of a Western Conference semifinal series. The Blues scored six unanswered goals after the Stars took a 1-0 lead, and they now lead the best-of-seven series two games to one. "It's nice to chip in," said Steen, who scored only one goal in the Blues' first nine playoff games. "We've had that mentality as a group, we have our roles going into the playoffs, and the number one thing is getting wins." Steen's first goal came 57 seconds after Colton Sceviour gave Dallas the lead just 4:44 into the game. A power-play goal by Backes at 16:10 put the Blues in front, but the Stars thought they tied the game ...