Saturday was yet another ugly loss for the Stars. And it looked so promising up 3-1 early in the second period. But the Penguins roared back and the Stars couldn't recover.

A few thoughts:

* That wasn't the kind of first start that Kari Lehtonen wanted. He didn't seem to be reacting quickly and, quite frankly, looked a little rusty. I think he'll improve with every start as he gets more and more used to the speed of the NHL again. Remember, his action the last two games has been his first since last April. But this team can't do anything unless the goaltending is solid and it hasn't been solid the last three games. Would you go back to Marty Turco on Monday? (We'll discuss that on Sunday morning).

* The Stars have allowed 17 goals in the three losses since the break. Yikes. That's not all on the goalies. The Stars' defense has not been good. They seem to be late to get to pucks and have had trouble covering players without the puck. That has to improve as well.

* The power play is 1-for-14 in the last three games. And to make things worse on Saturday, the Stars allowed a shorthanded goal on a 5-on-3 in the third period. Sidney Crosby gave in with Jordan Staal on a 2-on-1 and Crosby went high on Lehtonen (waiting for him to go down before depositing it top shelf).

* With 18 games left, the task of making the playoffs becomes even more difficult. As we talked about this morning, the Stars really need three points on this trip to at least keep pace. That means three points in the next two games against Washington and Buffalo. If the Stars don't get some points, it puts more pressure on them to produce during that six-game homestand that starts Friday.

How do you fix this team?