NHL Playoffs Roundup : Vernon and Calgary Win, Have Oilers Reeling

The two-time Stanley Cup champion Edmonton Oilers are within one game of elimination in the playoffs because they can’t handle a rookie goaltender on their home ice.

Mike Vernon, a 23-year-old native of Calgary, made 30 saves, at least half a dozen of them spectacular ones, Saturday night at Edmonton to lead the Flames to a 4-1 victory and a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven second-round series.

Calgary’s Lanny McDonald and Joel Otto scored just two minutes apart in the second period to give Vernon the lead he needed, and thereafter, the Oilers couldn’t put the puck past the determined youngster.

This was the third time that Vernon has faced the Oilers in Edmonton in his brief career. During the regular season, he tied them. In two playoff games, he beat them, holding them to a single goal in each.

This victory means that if Vernon, who is 4-1-1 against Edmonton overall, can stop the Oilers Monday night at Calgary, the champions will be eliminated.

When this season began, Rejean Lemelin was Calgary’s No. 1 goalie. Vernon wasn’t even the backup. The Flames had Marc D’Amour rated ahead of Vernon.

In posting a 9-3-3 record and a goals-against average of 3.39 in the regular season, Vernon moved from No. 3 to No. 1.

Against the high-scoring Oilers, he has performed as if he were No. 1 in the history of the NHL--except for the game at Calgary Thursday night when the Oilers beat him seven times on 27 shots. At the time, the Oilers thought they had solved the puzzle, but they were wrong.

Saturday night, Vernon gave up a goal to Wayne Gretzky before the second period was two minutes old. Gretzky maneuvered around a cluster of players and fired the puck into the corner of the net to make it 1-1. It was Gretzky’s 64th playoff goal, tying him with former Montreal star Yvan Cournoyer for fifth place on the all-time list.

That ended the scoring for the Oilers. They were doomed when McDonald beat Grant Fuhr at 12:35 of the second period.

After that, the Oilers pressed their attack, grouping three, four and sometimes five players around the Calgary net, but they couldn’t get a shot past the phenomenal Vernon. The Flames didn’t permit any breakaways, but Vernon had to make some tough saves from close range.

In the two seasons the Oilers won the Stanley Cup, they never trailed, 3-2, in a series. In 1984, though, the Flames took them to seven games before losing.

St. Louis 4, Toronto 3--For nearly half of the fifth game at St. Louis in this series, the Blues were trailing, 3-0, and appeared to be hopelessly beaten.

But they got their game together and tied the score when Bernie Federko scored halfway through the third period. At 7:11 of overtime, Mark Reeds scored to give the Blues the victory and a 3-2 lead in the series. The sixth game will be played at Toronto Monday night.

Greg Mullen, who stopped 38 shots, including the last 25 the Leafs fired at him, is 5-1 in the playoffs.

The Blues had the only three shots in overtime.