NHL Roundup : Lemieux Leads Penguins to 5-3 Victory

Mario Lemieux scored a hat trick and added an assist as Pittsburgh rallied from three goals down to beat Winnipeg, 5-3, Sunday at Winnipeg.

Lemieux tied the game, 3-3, at 6:30 of the third period when his shot from the boards deflected off Jet defenseman Brad Berry’s stick and past goalie Eldon Reddick.

Dan Quinn scored what turned out to be the game-winning goal at 10:32 with a shot from the slot. Lemieux scored his third goal into an empty net with one second left. It was his 48th goal of the season.

“We showed a lot a character,” Lemieux said. “We’re in a playoff race right now and it’s a big boost for us.”

The Penguins have 63 points and trail the New York Rangers by one point for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Patrick Division.

Winnipeg Coach Dan Maloney took responsibility for the loss, the Jets’ fourth defeat in seven games.

“It’s my responsibility to get these guys ready to play,” Maloney said. “They weren’t ready so I’ll take the knock for this one.”

Buffalo 5, Quebec 1--The Sabres got all their goals from the same line in the game at Buffalo. Christian Ruutu and Mike Foligno scored two goals apiece and Dave Andreychuk had one goal and three assists for the Sabres.

Buffalo moved into a tie with Quebec for fourth place in the Adams Division. Each team has 57 points and 13 games left to play in the quest for the division’s final playoff berth.

The Sabres have made a late-season run toward the playoffs after trailing Quebec by 18 points following a 7-0 loss to the Nordiques on Dec. 13.

Philadelphia 7, New Jersey 3--J.J. Daigneault and Rick Tocchet each scored two goals to lead the Flyers at Philadelphia.

The win was the Flyers’ 40th of the season, making Mike Keenan the first coach in NHL history to register at least 40 victories in his first three years behind the bench. The Flyers won 53 games in each of Keenan’s first two seasons.

Tocchet’s first goal came 1:38 into the game and sparked a three-goal barrage during a 1:32 span in the first period.

Daigneault scored on a rebound of a shot by Scott Mellanby at 2:28. Brian Propp then scored at 3:10 and the Flyers led, 3-0.

Calgary 7, New York Rangers 4--The Flames trailed, 3-1, after the first period, but scored six straight goals to defeat the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

Calgary goalie Rejean Lemelin improved his record to 12-3-1 in the last 16 games. He gave up three goals in a 2:47 span late in the first period, but didn’t allow another until Ron Dugay scored his second of the night on a power-play with 2:01 left.

Al MacInnis’ 30-foot slap shot in the second period broke a 3-3 tie and turned out to be the game-winner for the Flames.

New York Islanders 6, Chicago 5--Brian Trottier capped an Islander rally by scoring with just 23 seconds left in the game at Chicago.

Mike Bossy had three goals, all in the third period, the 39th hat trick of his career. Bossy tied the game, 5-5, after Trottier stole the puck behind the Blackhawk net.