DENVER – A light schedule in March was supposed to allow the Dallas Stars to heal some bumps and bruises. Instead, the intensity of the opposition is increasing the number of injury problems.

Defenseman Matt Niskanen missed most of the third period Saturday because his sore foot started acting up again. Brenden Morrow was driven into the bench post in the third, and Mike Modano was slew-footed by an Avalanche defender and landed violently on his back.

Morrow and Modano returned to the game and said they expect to be ready for tonight's game in Dallas against the Avalanche. Niskanen is listed as questionable, and the Stars are calling up defenseman Dan Jancevski from the minors as a possible replacement.

Morrow left the ice and looked like he might be out with a concussion. However, he said he never had any kind of concussion symptoms and he decided he could return "probably the second after I got off the ice."

Morrow stayed in the tunnel behind the Stars bench for a couple of minutes and checked his neck and legs, he said.

"I don't think I've ever had one [a concussion]," Morrow said. "Or if I did, I don't really know what they feel like. I was more concerned with the neck, because I've had some problems with that in the past. I felt some numbness in my legs, and I wanted to make sure that wasn't an issue."

Modano was battling near the blue line when he had his legs kicked out from underneath him.

"I couldn't catch myself, and it just shook," Modano said.

When asked what hurt, he replied: "Everything."

Still, he returned to the game and played several roles, including filling in for Niskanen on defense near the end of the game.

Line shuffling: Coach Dave Tippett shuffled his lines and played a good portion of the game with Brad Richards centering Modano's usual wingers, Steve Ott and Jere Lehtinen. He then had Modano centering Niklas Hagman and Antti Miettinen.

"I though Modano's group was good early, but we've still got some work to do," Tippett said. "It's less about combinations and more about execution."

Tippett said his top-level players have to be able to calmly handle the intense defensive pressure that opponents are applying.

"As you move on, you're going to have to generate things under pressure," he said. "And a lot of people who we rely upon to do that, to make big plays under pressure, haven't been able to accomplish that the last few games."

Briefly: Goalie Marty Turco said he's ready to play tonight if called upon: "No, I don't need a game off. It's an afternoon game, and a night game tomorrow. That's not a problem."... C Joel Lundqvist and RW Krys Barch were healthy scratches as Brad Winchester and Toby Petersen remained in the lineup for the Stars. ... Colorado D Adam Foote did not play because of a sore hip. He is questionable for tonight's game. ... Colorado C Peter Forsberg played in his 700th career game.