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FRISCO -- Dallas Stars captain Brenden Morrow admits 2011-12 wasn’t his season, and he simply wants to put it behind him and set his sights on 2012-13.

Morrow played in just 57 games this season and registered 11 goals, the second lowest total in his NHL career. He missed 25 games due to injuries, primarily back and neck issues. It wasn’t what he expected after he registered a career-high 33 goals in 2010-11.

“It’s the toughest one I’ve had,” Morrow said. “Any year the team doesn’t make the playoffs is frustrating and disappointing, but to have the season I had right from the start of the year, with that knee injury in the first exhibition game in Montreal, it just added up and added up. I’ll wipe this one clean and start fresh next year.”

Morrow played through the back and neck issues for a good part of the season, but sat out a couple weeks in November and December, and then was out for more than a month just after the All-Star break.

After that last time on the shelf, Morrow returned for the final 14 games of the season and he felt better. He wasn’t 100 percent and his playing time was scaled back, but he believes that an offseason of rest and conditioning will have him ready for next season.

"The back didn't seem to really be a problem. It was more the disk in the neck that were bothersome,” Morrow said of the final part of the season. “The good news is that every doctor I saw – three or four of them – all had the same opinion, which is the neck isn't going to be a problem. It just needs some rest, and settle those disks down before I get started for another grind."

You have to wonder if Morrow’ style of play has taken a toll over the years and if he’ll have to alter his physical style moving forward, but the Dallas captain said it’s not an issue.

“I think I’ve already been leaning in that direction the last few years,” he said “I don’t think your instincts are ever going to change. You’re still going to finish checks when your instincts tell you to, but I don’t think I am as physical or run around with the aggression I did when I was 20. Everyone’s game evolves and mine has kind of gone in that direction.”

And he said he thinks he can still be an effective goal scorer where he does his best scoring, within ten feet of the goal and in.

“I am not going to shy away from those areas,” he said. “I know that’s probably attributed to a lot of the problems I’ve been having, but I know why I am in the league, too. That’s where I am going to be. I'm actually comfortable saying that how much better I felt the last two weeks of the season compared to what I was dealing with before. I don't think health is going to be an issue."

DALLAS -- Stars captain Brenden Morrow has been back in the lineup for seven games, but the injury problems that have forced him to miss considerable time this season continue to slow him down. That’s why Stars coach Glen Gulutzan decided to move Morrow down the lineup for Saturday’s game against Calgary.

“Brenden has to do a lot to get game ready. The right thing to do is probably scale a couple of his minutes back just because of what he has to put himself through to be game ready,” Gulutzan said after Satuday’s game. “I talked to our captain a couple days ago about it, and he agreed. That’s why he’s our captain, what a professional guy he is.”

Morrow played on the fourth line with center Tom Wandell and Tomas Vincour in Saturday’s game. Morrow played 10:14 in the game, including only 7:46 of ice time. He saw 2:28 of power play time.

“I think 10-12 minutes while he is getting fully healthy is probably the right message,” said Gulutzan. “But he is one of our best net presence guys. He’s great in front of the net as you’ve seen here tonight, and he’s a big voice in our room of how we want to be and how we want to conduct ourselves. I have a lot of respect for Brenden Morrow. He wants to win.”

Off day for Stars

The Stars won’t practice Sunday. They fly later in the day to Calgary, where they’ll open a four-game road trip on Monday.

Prospect watch

Dallas Stars prospects Reilly Smith and Alex Chiasson both had their college seasons end this weekend, raising speculation that they could be soon heading to Texas Stars of the AHL to finish out the season. Both players have one year of college eligibility remaining, but there’s a good chance both players could now be ready to turn pro.

Smith, a third round pick in 2009, and Miami University were knocked out the NCCA tournament Friday with a loss to Massachusetts-Lowell. Smith, a right wing, ranked second in the nation in goal scoring with 30 in 39 games.

Chiasson, a second round pick in 2009, and Boston University were knocked out of the tournament by Minnesota on Saturday. Chiasson, a right wing, had 46 points (15 goals, 31 assists) in 38 games and ranked 14th nationally in points.

The Texas Stars have already added goalie Jack Campbell (1st round/2010) and F Austin Smith (5th round/2007) to their roster. Both players made their pro debuts Friday.

FRISCO -- Dallas Stars captain Brenden Morrow is getting closer to returning to the lineup after missing the last 18 games with neck and back issues. The Stars took Morrow off injured reserve Friday, making him eligible to play Saturday night against the Anaheim Ducks at American Airlines Center.

Whether Morrow will play is still up in the air. That will be decided some time Saturday, after he goes through the team’s morning skate. If Morrow can’t play Saturday, he should be ready to go for Tuesday’s game at Minnesota.

"I think we'll see after the morning skate where he is at," Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said. "I would say Tuesday Brenden is for sure and tomorrow, we'll see after the morning skate."

Morrow hasn’t played since February 2. He’s spent a lot of time working off ice on the neck and back issues and resumed skating at the beginning of the month. He practiced with the team for the first time on Thursday and went through an optional practice Friday, wrapping up the day with some hard skating.

"Right now it's one day at a time. I got a good skate in today. I'll see how I feel when I wake up tomorrow," Morrow said.

As for the injury, there have been no problems.

“The pain is gone,” he said. “It’s been four weeks now of trying to get the back to settle down. It feels really good.”

Whether he plays Saturday or Tuesday, Morrow is itching to get back in the lineup to help the surging Stars, who have climbed to the top of the Pacific Division with an 8-0-1 run.

“This is where I want to be, a part of this,” Morrow said. “The team is on a roll and I’d like to get back in there and help them out.”

And the Stars are looking forward to the return of their captain.

“Brenden is a great player and we can't wait to get him back. He's our captain, he's our leader, and we want him back healthy,” said Gulutzan. “There's no question getting him back in our lineup makes us a better hockey club.”

Notes: Souray out

*Stars forward Sheldon Souray, who left Thursday’s game with a lower body injury, won’t play Saturday. Gulutzan said Souray is 50-50 to play in the back-to-back games in Minnesota and Winnipeg on Tuesday and Wednesday.

*Stars forward Steve Ott, who missed Thursday’s game with back spasms, is questionable for Saturday.

*Defenseman Mark Fistric, who left Thursday’s game with a hand injury, is fine and is expected to play Saturday.

Barry Melrose discusses what Brenden Morrow coming back to the Stars means for their playoff hopes.

FRISCO, Texas -- Stars captain Brenden Morrow, who has missed the 14 games, with neck and back issues, resumed skating in Frisco on Thursday. It was the first time Morrow has been on the ice since he went out of the lineup in early February.

"Progressing pretty good," Morrow said after coming off the ice. "This is the first skate in about three weeks and so far no pain. I guess that’s a good sign."

Morrow hasn't played since Feb. 2 at San Jose. He's been doing off-ice work on the neck and back issues.

"It hasn’t been fun. It’s been a real strict core regimen to help stabilize the spine and try to relieve the stress on certain joints that I guess were causing me some problems," Morrow said. "It hasn’t been fun, but the guys have been playing well and that makes it a lot easier."

Morrow skated on his own Thursday at one end of the rink during the Stars' optional practice in Frisco. He also took part in a shootout drill at the end of practice. He said it's going to take some time before he's ready to play in a game.

"I am nowhere near game shape. It’s probably going to be a week or so before I am in any action," Morrow said. "It’s going to be skating and different movements that my body hasn’t been in and make sure I am not causing any pain and then we’ll start getting in some practices, getting bumped around a bit. I’ll take it slow at the beginning and then ramp it up before getting into a game."

Practice notes

*Besides Brenden Morrow, other players on the ice in Frisco on Thursday morning included Richard Bachman, Philip Larsen, Tom Wandell, Ryan Garbutt, Toby Petersen, Adam Pardy, Tomas Vincour and Jake Dowell.

*Morrow and Dowell (broken finger) will not travel with the team, and will continue to skate in Frisco.

*Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said Kari Lehtonen will start in goal Friday against Edmonton.

Dallas Stars captain Brenden Morrow is out for at least one week. The Stars placed Morrow on injured reserve Friday evening and recalled right wing Tomas Vincour from the Texas Stars of the AHL.

Morrow has been struggling with a neck issue and missed the last game before the All-Star break. He played in the first two games out of the break – at Anaheim (Wednesday) and at San Jose (Thursday) – but didn’t register a shot on goal in either contest.

Vincour has 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) in 18 games with Dallas this season. He was assigned to Texas at the All-Star break and played three games, registering 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist). Vincour ranks third on Texas in goal scoring this season with 11 in 18 games.

Here’s video of Stars captain Brenden Morrow’s hit on Kings forward Anze Kopitar in the third period of last night’s 5-4 Dallas shootout victory.

It was a big turning point as the Stars got a 4:00 power play after Mike Richards dropped the gloves with Morrow, picking up an instigator and an extra two minutes for instigating while wearing a visor. The Stars scored on the power play to tie the game 4-4 and then went on to win the shootout.

As for Kopitar, the word from Los Angeles is he had a bloody nose and sore shoulder and neck. There should be more on his status today.

The Kings didn’t take issue with the hit and Stars coach Glen Gulutzan agreed.

“We watched it in slow motion and in my mind it was a clean hit,” Gulutzan said. “He fell very awkward. I hope he is OK. I don’t know the extent of anything there. He fell awkwardly into the boards. I don’t think anything will come of it, but that is for the league to decide.”

DALLAS -- Stars captain Brenden Morrow was out on the ice for morning skate on Saturday and says he'll play tonight against Boston.

Morrow was hit in the left knee by a puck in the second period of Thursday's 4-1 loss to Columbus. He skated one shift in the third period, but left because the knee wasn't strong enough. After getting some treatment and ice on the knee on Friday, Morrow skated on Saturday at American Airlines Center and said the knee felt better.

"There's still a lot of swelling in there," Morrow said. "I'm just trying to get some of that swelling out. But it's 'thumbs up' for the game."

Morrow said the knee is vastly improved from where it was Friday morning.

"I had some work done yesterday and the MCL felt really weak with the bruise right on it," Morrow said. "The doctor didn't really know how it would react, but I came in today and it feels strong and that's really what I was concerned with. Structurally, the knee is sound."

Morrow said he isn't sure if he'll wear a knee brace for tonight's game because it's uncomfortable for him.

"It's a game-time decision," Morrow said.

FRISCO -- That time off to heal up from some injuries is paying dividends for Stars captain Brenden Morrow.

Since returning to action after sitting out for two weeks, Morrow has registered four goals and three assists in six games. In his 20 games before the time off, he had three goals and six assists.

“Pucks are going in for me and I am getting more opportunities. The body is feeling better and I’ve got a little bit more jump,” said Morrow. “I am getting to the areas I want to a little quicker.”

In late November, Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said they were going to give Morrow some time to get healthy since he was dealing with knee, elbow and back issues. The Stars wanted Morrow to get back to 100 percent.

“When he was sitting out this is what we wanted to transpire today – we’ve got a healthy captain back,” Gulutzan said. “We kind of stumbled around without him and in the beginning he wasn’t playing full capacity, he was 70 percent. To have him back and playing his game has been a huge lift for our group.”

Morrow said feeling better is part of the reason for his recent run. Things are clicking right now with linemates Mike Ribeiro and Steve Ott as well. That line was put together the last game before Morrow went out of the lineup and was back together when he returned.

“I think there’s a little bit of an element with Otter being in there,” Morrow said. “He gets in hard on the forecheck and turns pucks over. I am able to stay a little higher and get to an area where Ribby can get a pass to me. Before maybe I was doing some of the work in the corners and not looking for the pass so much.”

And right now everything is adding up to a nice run for the Stars captain, who will enter Wednesday’s game on a three-game goal scoring streak.

“I’m getting back to being comfortable again,” he said. “I wasn’t real happy with the results I was getting, but the results are starting to come and I am feeling confident again. Slowly but surely, things are feeling better and getting back.”

Burish set to return

Stars forward Adam Burish will return to the lineup Wednesday after missing the last 15 games with a broken hand.

"I am ready to go. Felt good today. I saw the doctor last night, so everything checked out,” Burish said after Tuesday’s practice in Frisco. “I'm excited. Practicing is fun, hanging out with the guys in the locker room again is fun. It feels like the first game of the season again.”

Burish is expected to play on the fourth line in Wednesday’s game.

“He’s excited and we’re excited to have him back,” said Stars coach Glen Gulutzan. “When you get a guy that plays with that much passion, it’s nice to have in the lineup.”

Burish was injured in the November 15 game against Florida when a puck shot by Brenden Morrow hit him in the hand.

Stars will continue to roll with Bachman

Richard Bachman will make his sixth straight start in Wednesday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Bachman is 4-1-0 with a 2.25 goals against average and a .924 save percentage in six appearances since being called up from the AHL due to an injury to Kari Lehtonen.

Bachman is coming off a solid 25-save performance against Anaheim Monday. It was a good bounce back performance for Bachman, who gave up six goals on 31 shots in Friday’s loss to New Jersey.

I think as a young guy trying to get his foot in the NHL and establish himself, I think it’s important to have that kind of game,” said Stars coach Glen Gulutzan. “I had him in Austin and if he had a subpar game he always bounced back. He’s a real resilient guy. He’s a battler and that’s his strength. “

Said Bachman: “You never want to wait too long after a loss to get back out there. That Jersey game didn’t go as well as I would have liked it to, but I just tried to take some of the positives, move forward and not look back on that. I just wanted to get back out there and do the same thing I’ve been doing.”

And what he’s been doing is winning games for the Stars, and that’s why Gulutzan is continuing to roll with him right now.

"We're winning hockey games and at the end of the day that's what we're about here,” Gulutzan said. “We're trying to get wins and he's providing us with those."

The Stars have activated Brenden Morrow and Alex Goligoski from injured reserve. Here's the release.

The Dallas Stars announced today that the club has activated forward Brenden Morrow and defenseman Alex Goligoski from injured reserve. Morrow was placed on injured reserve on Nov. 26 (retroactive to Nov. 21) with an upper body injury and Goligoski was placed on injured reserve on Nov. 15 (retroactive to Nov. 11)with a broken thumb.

Morrow, 32, has missed the past six games after suffering an upper body injury against the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 21. The Carlyle, Saskatchewan, native has appeared in 20 games this season for the Stars, registering three goals and six assists for nine points. The 6-0, 205-pound forward has earned an even-or-plus rating in 17 of the 20 contests he’s played in this season.

Goligoski, 26, has missed the last 11 games after suffering a broken thumb on November 11 at the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Grand Rapids, MN, native has appeared in 15 games this season with the Stars and is third among Dallas defensemen in scoring with two goals and four assists, totaling six points. The 5-11, 181-pound defenseman has logged over 20 minutes of ice-time per-game in 36 of his 38 contests as a member of the Dallas Stars since coming to the team via a trade with Pittsburgh on Feb. 21, 2011.

The Dallas Stars placed captain Brenden Morrow on injured reserve today retroactive to November 21.

Morrow has missed the last two games with what is officially being listed as an upper body injury that he suffered in Monday’s game against Edmonton.

Morrow has been slowed by a variety of issues this season, including his back, knee and infected elbow. The Stars are giving him some time to get completely healthy.

Morrow will miss the next two games – tonight at Phoenix and Monday at Colorado – and the Stars expect him to return to the lineup Thursday when they play Ottawa in Dallas.

Stars coach Marc Crawford, captain Brenden Morrow and forward Mike Ribeiro talk about the addition of Alex Goligoski.

Here are some photos from last night's Dallas Stars-Chicago Blackhawks game.You can see all Shannon Byrne's photos here or by clicking below on the image of Brenden Morrow and Marty Turco.

A few Dallas Stars made Super Bowl picks before the big game. Here are some of them (more to come):

Rob Scichili (assistant VP communications): Green Bay 27, Pittsburgh 23

Frank Provenzano (assistant GM): Green Bay 49, Pittsburgh 3

Brenden Morrow: Green Bay 21, Pittsburgh 20

Joe Nieuwendyk: Green Bay 27, Pittsburgh 24

Marc Crawford: Green Bay 26, Pittsburgh 22

Mike Valley (assistant coach): Green Bay 27, Pittsburgh 24

Stephane Robidas: Pittsburgh 23, Green Bay 17

Brad Richards: Green Bay 24, Pittsburgh 21

Ralph Strangis: Green Bay 38, Pittsburgh 28

Adam Burish: Green Bay 28, Pittsburgh 20

Mark Janko (manager, hockey administration): Pittsburgh 24, Green Bay 17

Daryl Reaugh: Green Bay 6, Pittsburgh 4

Mike Modano (I'll always think of him as a Star): Green Bay 24, Pittsburgh 17

Here's a quote from Brenden Morrow following the Stars' 4-3 overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings Sunday.

“It does say a lot about our team. It would have been nice to do it in regulation because we’re just tightening that Western Conference right now with all those points. Being down, fighting hard, we’ve just found ways the last three weeks or so to stay in games. This one could have been easy to let get away from us. [Andrew Raycroft] made some big saves for us, our PK did a good job and we just hung around and pounced when we got the opportunities.”

A statistical note: The Stars are 10-2-2 in their last 14 games and 9 of those 10 wins have been by one goal.