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Stars-Flames Preview

Oct 9, 2009 - 6:25 AM By ALAN FERGUSON STATS Writer

Dallas (0-0-2) at Calgary (4-0-0), 9:00 p.m. EDT

With help from a stunning last-second goal, the Calgary Flames matched their best start in franchise history.

The Flames will try to build off that clutch victory and win five straight to open a season for the first time Friday night when they host the Dallas Stars.

Rene Bourque scored with 1.5 seconds left to send Thursday night's game at Edmonton into overtime, and Olli Jokinen's shootout goal held up under review for a 4-3 victory.

The current Flames (4-0-0) joined the 1993-94 edition as the franchise's only teams to win their first four games.

"That's a huge game for us," left wing Nigel Dawes said of Thursday's win. "We really battled hard right to the end. You never know what can happen, so that's why you have to keep pushing."

Despite the loss of leading goal scorer Michael Cammalleri to free agency, the Flames have averaged four goals per game this season, with four Calgary players already netting two apiece.

Among those is Eric Nystrom, who is nearly halfway to his career high of five goals, scored in 76 games last season. Bourque had a goal and two assists Thursday to give him a team-leading six points on the new campaign.

The Flames are also 5 for 11 (45.5 percent) on the power play despite an 0-for-4 performance Thursday.

Calgary will meet a Dallas team on the verge of its worst start since 1988-89, when the franchise then known as the Minnesota North Stars dropped its first four games.

The Stars (0-0-2) rallied to tie visiting Nashville in the third period of Saturday night's season opener but couldn't prevail in five shootout rounds and lost 3-2. On Tuesday night in Edmonton, Dallas failed to hold on to a third-period lead and didn't score in the shootout for a 5-4 defeat.

"We're actually playing pretty good hockey," goaltender Marty Turco said. "But we still only got two out of four points to start the year. The level of play is right, the mindset is right, we just have to start converting."

Turco posted a career-worst 2.81 goals-against average last season while making a career-high 74 appearances - second most in the league behind Calgary netminder Miikka Kiprusoff's 76. He's off to a similar start this season with a 2.77 GAA and a career-worst .880 save percentage.

That could lead the Stars to start Alex Auld on Friday. The Stars are expected to play Auld either against Calgary or Sunday night in Vancouver - the finale of a three-game trip through western Canada.

Turco, however, has a 1.79 GAA in 23 career games against the Flames, including a 1.51 GAA in four matchups last season. Auld, meanwhile, is winless with a 5.12 GAA in his last three matchups versus Calgary, and was pulled after the second period in his only meeting last season with the Flames, a 6-3 home loss for Ottawa.

James Neal has been a bright spot for the Stars, scoring three of their six goals. Brenden Morrow has two goals and an assist - all in Tuesday's loss - after missing most of last season with a torn right ACL.

Dallas split its four meetings with Calgary in 2008-09, after winning 11 of 15 in the previous four seasons.