[sachmo71]

Hicks is PISSED! I don't think we'll be seeing you guys in the playoffs for a while...

Hicks Blasts Stars, Says Changes Coming
By Mac Engel
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
FRISCO - Standing in front of a hockey team that, at best, underachieved, Stars owner Tom Hicks lived out a fan's fantasy when he ripped his team Tuesday morning.

According to Stars sources, when Hicks addressed the team at their practice facility in Frisco, he said: "You were brought here for a reason: To win, and you didn't do that. ... A lot of you won't be here next year. ... This is for real. The owners are unified and we're going to change the way hockey does its business."

Hicks was understandably upset after watching a three-year investment that eclipsed the $180 million mark net nothing. Other than vent some obvious frustration, his point was simple: Changes in the league and the team are coming. The golden-egg, $69 million payroll era is done. The budget-conscious days of a payroll under $50 million is coming.

Look around you. The person on your right and your left may not be here next season.

As the Stars said their final goodbye Tuesday morning, they did so knowing that an era is over. The league faces a labor situation that threatens all of next season, and the Stars are preparing to drastically change the way they build the team.

Consecutive early playoff exits, and the prospect of a salary-capped NHL, mean the team no longer will bring in high-priced free agents. Instead, the Stars will use the players they have to guide the young players in hopes of building a new core.

"We are going to have to say goodbye to some higher-priced veteran players and allow some of the younger players in our organization the opportunity to be in the NHL," Stars general manager Doug Armstrong said.

The team now will be built around Brenden Morrow, Marty Turco, Steve Ott, Trevor Daley, Antti Miettinen, Mathias Tjarnqvist and possibly Junior Lessard and Loui Eriksson.

The team will not be built around the free-agent stars of the summer.

"One thing I want to make clear is that this is a problem I created," Armstrong said. "Every player, coach and every person in hockey management except one has been traded for or re-signed by me. I do not want to be perceived as passing the buck."

Hicks said Armstrong will retain his position. Dave Tippett will enter the third and final year of his contract as a lame-duck head coach. He probably will need a good postseason to secure an extension.

As for the roster, 13 players will become unrestricted free agents on July 1, and none is expected to be immediately retained, if at all.

The biggest casualty is expected to be center Jason Arnott, who has not escaped the rap that he is an enigma encased in one of the NHL's most dominant frames.

"At times he is a dominating player," Tippett said. "At times he is just a player."

Arnott, who made $3.85 million this season, is a restricted free agent. The Stars are not expected to tender a contract offer, thereby making Arnott an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Wing Valeri Bure finds himself in a similar situation.

Unlike summers past when then Stars were one of the NHL's most active franchises, they expect to be dormant until the early fall. Armstrong said there is a possibility the team will not make any moves until a new collective bargaining agreement is reached.

The NHL's collective bargaining agreement expires Sept. 15, and both the players and owners have said they are prepared for no NHL games next season. The mere chance of a salary cap, a lower cost to buy out contracts, and other economic rules will affect the way the Stars operate.

The Stars are currently committed to almost $44 million between 10 players for next season. If there is cost certainty, the Stars may not be able to spend much without exceeding a salary cap or tax threshold. They could try to move some of their signed players to shed more payroll.

Whatever they do, one thing is certain: The way they did things is over.

"We are starting at a foundation now where we are going to grow," Armstrong said. "It's going to be a different-looking team."