NHL ROUNDUP : Capitals Discover a Haven

The Washington Capitals, hampered by injuries to two key players, opened their longest trip of the season in their favorite spot away from home--the Philadelphia Spectrum.

Defenseman Kevin Hatcher scored twice Tuesday night and the Capitals breezed to a 6-2 victory over the Flyers, ending their six-game winning streak. They beat goalie Ken Wregget, who was 6-0 this season.

The Capitals extended their unbeaten streak at the Spectrum to five games (4-0-1), taking charge after Hatcher’s shot at 13:59 of the second period bounced off the stick of Flyer defenseman Gord Murphy and broke a 2-2 tie.

Earlier in the period, Hatcher’s short-handed goal started the downfall of Wregget.

The Capitals, who will play four more games before returning home, are without high-scoring Dino Ciccarelli and defender Tom May. Ciccarelli, who scored 41 goals last season, will be sidelined for six weeks because of a broken right hand. May suffered a broken knuckle on his left hand, but might be sidelined for only a week.

Rick Tocchet scored both Philadelphia goals and has seven in nine games.

“We had to make some line changes,” Capital Coach Terry Murray said. “The players knew they had to play harder to make up for the losses and they exceeded expectations.”

New Jersey 8, New York Islanders 1--The Devils have trouble winning any place, but losses at Uniondale, N.Y., are close to sure things.

With Rookie Troy Crowder getting his first two goals, the Devils improved their record at the Nassau Coliseum to 3-38-6.

The Devils, who were 0-3-0 on the road, dominated from the start. They scored once in the first period on 18 shots, but broke it open with five goals in 9:49 of the second period.

The Devils outshot the Islanders, 52-15. Once before, against Winnipeg in 1988, the Islanders lost by an 8-1 score at home.

Detroit 6, Vancouver 0--The Canucks, off to a fast start at home, found the going rough at Detroit.

Goaltender Tim Cheveldae, in his 40th NHL game, stopped 28 shots for his first shutout.

Sergei Fedorov, who defected from the Soviet National team last summer, had two goals and an assist as the Red Wings improved their home record to 5-0-0. On the road, they are 0-3-2.

The Canucks, who have converted only five of 43 power plays, had a man advantage five times.

Montreal 5, Pittsburgh 4--The Canadiens, after blowing a 3-2 lead, rallied for two goals in the last three minutes at Pittsburgh to pull out the victory.

Eric Desjardins scored the tying goal at 17:00, and 38 seconds later Mathieu Schneider scored the go-ahead goal.

The Penguins, still without their top player, injured Mario Lemieux, are 1-5-1 after winning their first two games.