Since Dave Tippett took over as head coach in 2002, the Stars haven't enjoyed much success against the Red Wings in the regular season, posting a 4-11-5 record overall and a 2-6-2 record at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

The Red Wings won three of four from the Stars during the regular season, including both games in Detroit.

This will be the first meeting between the two teams in the playoffs in the Tippett era. This is the farthest the Stars have gotten in the playoffs under Tippett and the first time the team has been to a Conference Finals since 2000.

The Red Wings are making their second straight appearance in the Conference Finals, where they lost in six games last year to Anaheim.

The Stars got here by knocking off the defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks in the first round and then toppling San Jose, a Stanley Cup favorite to many, in the second round.

The Red Wings knocked off division rival Nashville in six games and then swept an injury plagued Colorado Avalanche team in the second round.

Both teams come in relatively healthy, or at least as healthy as a team can be at this point in the season. Detroit has a full lineup except for forward Tomas Kopecky, who is out for the season following knee surgery.

The Stars have two question marks going into the series. Forward Stu Barnes (concussion-like symptoms) and defenseman Philippe Boucher (hip) are skating and traveling with the team, but are doubtful to open the series on Thursday. 

Turco, who is playing with a great deal of confidence and at a very high level, has catapulted the playoff monkey off his back thanks to his performance this season and his showing in last season's series against Vancouver. But he still an issue with Detroit. He is 2-10-5 lifetime against the Red Wings and 0-7-2 in Joe Louis Arena. That's one last hurdle for him to clear, but his play right indicates he could be ready to do it.

Osgood came in to relieve Dominik Hasek in the first round series against Nashville and all he has done is posted a 6-0 record. Osgood is often underappreciated, but he's a very good goalie and has a Stanley Cup (1998) on his resume. A lot of people remember that Jamie Langenbrunner goal back in 1998, but a lot of people forget he shutout the Stars in the next game to win the series. That's resiliency. That's Osgood. He's also 27-10-3 in his career against the Stars.

The Red Wings defense starts with Nicklas Lidstrom, who is the best defenseman in the league. Throw in guys like Brian Rafalski, Brad Stuart (an excellent deadline acquisition), a physical Niklas Kronwall, Chris Chelios and Brett Lebda, and you have the makings of a deep, talented set of top six defensemen. Those defensemen are also providing some offensive punch, led by Kronwall (8 assists), Lidstrom (2 goals, 5 assists) and Rafalski (1 goal, 6 assists).

The Red Wings are deep and talented up front as well. They have gotten goals from ten different forwards, and their top two lines have been very productive. Top line forwards Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg, who are both Selke Finalists due to their defensive prowess, have combined for 26 points (12 goals, 14 assists) through the first two rounds. Crease lizard Tomas Holmstrom is on that line as well. Second line wing Johan Franzen leads the playoffs with 11 goals. The Red Wings third line of Dan Cleary, Kris Draper and Dallas Drake has popped in a few goals as well.

The Red Wings power play was so-so in the first round series against Nashville, going 3-22 over the six games. It caught fire against the depleted Avalanche, hitting on 7-23 chances. Detroit's penalty kill, on average, has been good in the playoffs, but it struggled towards the end of the Colorado series. It will need to clean that up against Dallas or it could be an issue.

Detroit's Mike Babcock, whose intense style is a contrast to Tippett's usually more laid back approach, has an impressive track record. In his first season as an NHL coach he led the Ducks to the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals. He's led Detroit to three-straight 50-win seasons and has them in in the Western Conference Finals for a second straight season. He's also a finalist for the Jack Adams Award, which goes to the league's top coach.

With the Wings coming off a long layoff and not a lot of resistance from Colorado in round two, the Stars might have an opening to steal a game in Detroit. Can they win two to open the series the way they did in Anaheim and San Jose? Probably not. But one win in Detroit in those first two games, especially the first one, would be huge.

The Stars are playing their best hockey right now and Turco, despite his past woes against the Wings and in Detroit, is a goalie on a roll and brimming with confidence.

Goaltending is always key in a series and so are special teams. Both those appear to tilt the Stars way right now, and if that holds up then the Stars will be in a position to knock off another one of the big teams in the West.