NHL Roundup : Sabres Defeat Flyers, 2-1, in Sator’s Debut as Coach

Maybe, the third coach for the Buffalo Sabres will be the charm. After Scotty Bowman started the season 4-7-2, he was replaced by Craig Ramsay.

Ramsay didn’t win until his ninth game as coach. And, with the team’s record at 7-22-4, Ramsay was replaced by Ted Sator, fired earlier by the New York Rangers.

For his debut Tuesday night at Buffalo, all Sator had to do was beat the team with the best record in the league, the Philadelphia Flyers.

But goaltender Jacques Cloutier stopped 29 shots, and Doug Smith, recently recalled from the minors, scored both goals as the Sabres shocked the Flyers, 2-1. It was only the eighth loss in 35 games for the leaders of the Patrick Division.

Despite the victory, the Sabres (8-22-4) have the worst record in the league.

Sator is a former assistant with the Flyers. Last spring, his Rangers knocked the Flyers out of the playoffs.

Hartford 2, Boston 0--Doug Jarvis assisted on a goal to celebrate playing in his 914th consecutive game in this shutout win for the Whalers at Hartford.

Jarvis, one of the league’s top defensive centers, will break Garry Unger’s record of 914, which ended in 1980, when he steps on the ice Friday night against Montreal.

Mike Liut stopped 23 shots to register his third shutout of the season.

New York Islanders 4, Pittsburgh 3--Mike Bossy deflected Steve Konroyd’s shot with 95 seconds left in overtime to beat the Penguins at Uniondale, N.Y. It was Bossy’s 22nd goal of the season.

The Islanders sent the game into overtime when defenseman Ken Leiter fired a shot from just inside the blue line with 4:50 remaining for his fourth goal of the season.

New York Rangers 8, New Jersey 5--Tony McKegney made goaltender Bob Froese’s debut at New York a winning one.

McKegney scored twice in the third period to break open a close game. He has 17 goals in the 19 games since being acquired from Minnesota.

Froese, the No. 1 netminder for Philadelphia last season, stopped 28 shots.

Winnipeg 2, Edmonton 1--The Jets, winless in their last nine games, held Wayne Gretzky scoreless at Edmonton and struck twice in the middle of the third period to end the Oilers’ unbeaten streak at seven.

Dale Hawerchuk scored his 22nd goal with just over nine minutes remaining to give the Jets the victory.

Goalie Pokey Reddick climaxed a sensational night by stopping Gretzky’s back-hander from point blank in the closing minutes.

Detroit 3, Chicago 1--Darren Veitch scored on a power play and assisted on another goal at Detroit, and the Red Wings ended the Blackhawks three-game winning streak. It was the Red Wings’ first win at home in nine games.

Toronto 4, Minnesota 3--The Maple Leafs, winless in their previous 13 games with the North Stars, fell behind, 3-1, halfway through the final period.

Russ Courtnall and Steve Thomas got the Maple Leafs even in regulation and, with just 20 seconds left in overtime, Rick Vaive blasted a shot into the corner of the net to end the streak.