NHL ROUNDUP : Islanders’ Healy Stops 39 Shots to Key 1-0 Victory Over Sabres

The most obvious feature in the New York Islanders’ drive from last place to first in the Patrick Division has been an impressive defense.

With two goaltenders obtained from the offensive-minded Kings, the Islanders are becoming a creditable contender. Young Mark Fitzpatrick is No. 1, but the backup, Glenn Healy, is no slouch.

Healy stopped 39 shots Sunday night at Buffalo as the Islanders defeated the Sabres, 1-0. Derek King’s goal on a power play with 4:20 left in the third period won it for New York, 12-3-1 in its past 16 games. During that span the Islanders have allowed only 42 goals.

King, who has five goals this season and only 31 in his two years in the NHL, called it “probably my biggest career goal.”

“I just swiped it with my backhand,” he said. “It went kind of up in the air real slow. It took two minutes to go into the net. He (Buffalo goalie Daren Puppa) just watched it go over top. There was nothing he could do about it.”

Sabre Coach Rick Dudley was searching for reasons why his team has lost all three games against the Islanders this season.

“How do you figure it: 115 shots, two goals, three losses,” he said. “This was a tough loss to take.”

Montreal 2, Hartford 0--Patrick Roy led the Canadiens at Montreal, stopping 19 shots to record his second consecutive shutout.

Roy stopped 30 shots on Saturday night in a 1-0 victory over Buffalo. He has a shutout string of 167 minutes, 39 seconds.

Mike McPhee and Brent Gilchrist scored for the Canadiens, who managed only 24 shots and did not score in six power-play opportunities.

Edmonton 5, Washington 4--Jari Kurri tied the game late in third period and then scored 3:13 into overtime at Landover, Md., to lead the Oilers.

The victory snapped a two-game losing streak and gave the Oilers their first victory in an afternoon game in two seasons. Edmonton was 0-5-1 in afternoon games since the beginning of the 1988-89 season.

Boston 3, Quebec 2--Former King Bob Carpenter collected two assists at Quebec to lead the Bruins.

Boston, which leads the Adams Division, dominated most of the game, outshooting the Nordiques, 52-17.

New York Rangers 4, Minnesota 3--John Ogrodnick scored two power-play goals at New York, but the key score came from Darren Turcotte.

Turcotte broke a 3-3 tie halfway through the third period and the North Stars’ record in their last 13 road games fell to 1-11-1.

Winnipeg 7, Chicago 3--Paul Fenton scored twice and Brent Ashton had a goal and three assists at Winnipeg to give the Jets their first victory over the Black Hawks since 1987.

The victory moved the Jets seven points ahead of the Kings in the Smythe Division.

Vancouver 4, New Jersey 2--The Canucks came from behind to score three goals in the third period at Vancouver and end a five-game losing streak. Dave Capuano scored his first NHL goal at 13:55 of the third period for the winning shot.