FATIGUE

The subject of fatigue came up during the broadcast in L.A. last night.

The context was Marty Turco, playing in his 72nd game of the season – a season that has not been, by his standards, a good one.

Tired? Maybe a little -losing takes its toll and he’s much more active than most goaltenders – sort of like a defenseman/goaltender hybrid. But workload doesn’t factor into the first 25 games of a season does it? And fatigue doesn’t seem to be a crutch for a handful of other netminders who have been every night sentinels for their teams.

Want an example from previous seasons? How about Marty Brodeur?! He played 77 last year and his team finished 5th in goals against. Same goes for Nabokov in San Jose, he played 77 and the Sharks were 3rd in GAA. Luongo played in 73, Lundqvist played 72 and led the league with 10 shutouts. Is that enough?

Maybe I’m just crass but I really don’t believe “fatigue” has a very prominent place on the excuse list.

Just look at the hoops and hurdles this franchise goes through and over to ensure that the Stars have excuses erased from the equation.

· A chartered 757 jet with deep reclining seats, a half a dozen flight attendants who go nonstop to get them whatever they need during the flights – and that usually includes pre-takeoff food along with three or four choices of meals. A 3-hour flight is three hours of tasty delights and pampering – and it doesn’t start with a cavity search like every other business traveler’s does.

· Accommodations at first class, five star hotels with many of the players getting their own rooms.

· Countless team meals set up to ensure they eat well prior to, and after games.

· Extra nights in hotels on the West Coast to help with the time zone hit when travelling back home to play two days later.

· A separate bus for players and coaches (To keep the travelling floaters at arms length)

· A dedicated team services person.

· A team masseuse, two medical trainers, three equipment trainers, and a strength and conditioning coach.

· A state of the art practice facility

· Accommodating practice times

· Optional practices up the ying yang

· A payroll within the width of a cigarette paper of the league’s cap.

If that kind of treatment grinds you down as a professional athlete you might have to reconsider your vocation. (Or your own routine)

Sorry but excuses are what losers cling to for justification.

Marty Turco isn’t a loser, in fact he’s one of the winningest goalies in the league this season, but that statistical category aside, he’s just simply picked a real poor time to have a rare sub-par season.

Tired?

Tired of the Paula Abduling (hearing perky, positive feedback in an effort to spare the individuals feelings), that’s all I’m tired of.