NHL ROUNDUP : Limping Hull Keeps Scoring; Blues Beat Sabres in Overtime

Brett Hull is not letting a sprained ankle keep him from putting the puck in the net.

Although he has to skip an occasional game and often misses a couple of shifts when he does play, Hull continues to score almost at will.

Hull’s second goal of the game with only 45 seconds left in overtime gave the St. Louis Blues a 5-4 victory over the Sabres Wednesday night at Buffalo.

It was the sixth loss in a row for the Sabres, who blew a 2-0 lead for the second game in a row.

Hull has 57 goals in 54 games. He has four in the last two games.

Adam Oates, who assisted on Hull’s first period-goal that tied the score, 2-2, won a faceoff deep in the Sabres’ zone late in overtime. He passed the puck to Hull, who beat goalie Daren Puppa from the right faceoff circle.

Puppa cost himself when he misplayed defenseman Jeff Brown’s 50-foot shot eight minutes into the last period. That tied the score, 4-4.

Hartford 5, Edmonton 1--Just about the time the Edmonton Oilers were thinking they were as good as any team in the NHL, they had to hit the road.

A power-play goal by Ron Francis triggered a four-goal uprising in the third period at Hartford that sent the Oilers reeling to their second loss in a row on the road.

With a victory at Buffalo on Sunday, the Oilers moved to within six points of the Kings in the Smythe Division.

Tuesday night at Boston they built a 4-1 lead, blew it and lost in overtime.

Before breaking lose Wednesday, the Whalers had scored only seven goals in the previous 14 periods.

Chicago 8, Montreal 3--Steve Thomas scored on the Blackhawks’ first shot at Montreal, and it was the signal for one of their most impressive offensive displays.

The Blackhawks scored four times on goalie Andre Racicot in the first period and scored two more early in the second against his replacement, Frederic Chabot.

With a 6-0 lead in 26 minutes, the Blackhawks breezed. They improved their record to 35-17-4, best in the NHL.

The Canadiens outshot the Blackhawks, 34-19, but never really threatened.

New York Rangers 5, New York Islanders 2--The Islanders have dominated the Rangers this season by getting physical. But in this game at New York, getting physical cost them.

The Islanders jumped in front in the opening minutes, but late in the first period Brad Lauer of the Islanders drew a major penalty for high-sticking Tie Domi.

While Lauer was in the penalty box, Mike Gartner, John Ogrodnick and Ray Sheppard scored and the Rangers never looked back.

In the four previous meetings the Islanders were 2-0-2.

By ending their brief slump, the Rangers increased their lead to four points in the Patrick Division.

Toronto 5, Winnipeg 5--A fluke goal by Scott Arniel with less than four minutes left in regulation at Winnipeg deprived the Maple Leafs of a victory.

Arniel’s pass from behind the Maple Leafs’ net hit Toronto defenseman Todd Gill and deflected into the net to tie the score.