NHL Roundup : Gretzky, Lemieux Are Both Injured

The latest matchup between the two top players in the National Hockey League, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, turned out to be a short-lived affair.

The two, undoubtedly the best players in hockey, were injured early in the battle between the Stanley Cup champion Oilers and the Pittsburgh Penguins Friday night at Edmonton.

Gretzky, who recently returned after missing 13 games with a knee injury, was accidentally struck in the eye with a stick on just his second appearance on the ice.

Gretzky suffered a corneal abrasion and minor internal bleeding in his left eye. He is expected to miss at least the next three games.

The fabulous Oiler star fell heavily to the ice. He had to be helped off. An eye specialist, in a preliminary report, said there is “some damage” to the eye. Gretzky was taken to a hospital, and there will be further examination today.

The accident deprived fans of a much-awaited meeting between the two scoring leaders.

Ironically, late in the first period, Lemieux was struck in the face by a blistering slapshot off the stick of his teammate, Doug Bodger. Lemieux left the ice with his bleeding face covered by a towel.

It was reported that Lemieux had suffered a broken nose. He also needed several stitches to close the wound around the nose.

Of course, neither star returned to the ice. From the time the two stars left, the game was a letdown.

However, Craig Simpson, a former Penguin, scored twice to lead the Oilers to a 7-3 victory that enabled them to climb back into a tie with Calgary for first place in the Smythe Division.

It is expected that Lemieux will return to action Sunday in Pittsburgh when the Penguins host St. Louis.

Gretzky, already in danger of losing his scoring title after missing so many games, began the game at Edmonton trailing Lemieux by 14 points. When Lemieux assisted on a goal before he was hurt, his lead became 15 points.

Gretzky needs one more assist to break his tie with Gordie Howe for the all-time record in assists. Both have 1,049.

New Jersey 6, New York Rangers 3--In what they figured was their biggest game of the season, the Rangers fell flat at East Rutherford, N.J.

The Rangers came in with a 7-2-2 record in their previous 11 games and needing a victory to move out of last place in the Patrick Division.

Instead, the Devils, who had won lost five of their previous seven, dominated play. Doug Brown scored twice and had an assist to lead the attack.

Andy Brickey’s goal in the first minute of the second period gave the Devils a 4-2 lead, and the Rangers were never able to get closer than one goal the rest of the game.

Philadelphia 5, Buffalo 4--The Flyers spotted the Sabres two goals before the game at Buffalo was four minutes old, then roared back to gain the victory.

The Flyers scored five goals in a row to chase goaltender Jacques Cloutier and take a 5-2 lead in the middle of the second period.

Tom Barrasso, who replaced Cloutier, stopped the Flyers the last half of the game, but the desperate Sabres’ rally came up one goal short.

Washington 6, Winnipeg 0--Goaltender Clint Malarchuk stopped 29 shots at Winnipeg and ended his seven-game winless streak by turning in a shutout.

Going into the game, Malarchuk had a lifetime record of 0-6-1 against the Jets.

But, all he needed was Bobby Gould’s goal halfway through the first period. However, the Capitals, who have won five in a row in their latest surge, poured it on from the start.

They chased goaltender Pokey Reddick after two periods and continued their assault on Daniel Berthiaume.

Mike Gartner had 2 goals for the Capitals to run his total to 38. Defenseman Kevin Hatcher had three assists.

The shutout ended the consecutive scoring streak of Winnipeg star Dale Hawerchuk at 12 games.

Toronto 5, Vancouver 0--Tom Fergus scored a goal and had two assists at Vancouver to lead the Maple Leafs to their first road victory in almost two months.

Toronto’s last road victory was a 5-1 win Dec. 23 at St. Louis. The Maple Leafs are five points ahead of Minnesota for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Norris Division.