NHL ROUNDUP : Islanders Continue Climb, Defeat Devils

Less than two months ago the hapless New York Islanders had won only 12 of 38 games and were last in the Patrick Division.

They were so far behind they had no thought of contending for a playoff spot.

They had traded their best player, Pat LaFontaine, their one link to their glory years. It seemed to be a case of wait until next year.

The Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins led the Islanders by 18 points as the new year began.

First, the Penguins, beset by injuries, faltered. Then, the Islanders took hope. They started playing better.

When Steve Thomas scored at 3:48 of overtime Friday night at East Rutherford, N.J., he gave the Islanders a 3-2 victory over New Jersey and put them only one point behind the fourth-place Penguins.

With 18 games left in the regular season, the Islanders (27-28-7) are flying in their bid to win the final playoff spot in the division. The Penguins are stumbling.

So, too, are the Devils, but they are safely entrenched in third place in the division. The Devils are 0-3-2 in their last five games and are 0-2-2 against the Islanders this season.

The duo of Thomas and Pierre Turgeon have sparked the Islanders’ surge from their 12-20-6 start.

The Islanders were outplayed for two periods, but Turgeon set up Thomas for his 19th goal early in the third period to tie it.

In the extra period, Thomas tipped Turgeon’s pass past Chris Terreri for the winning goal.

The Islanders did not play Olympic star defenseman Scott Lachance, whom they signed Thursday. He may play tonight when the teams play again at Uniondale, N.Y.

Montreal 3, San Jose 3--Pat Fallon scored with one second left in regulation at San Jose to give the Sharks a tie.

With the stunning tie, the Canadiens extended their unbeaten streak to nine games (5-0-4). Gilbert Dionne scored the first two goals and Montreal outshot the Sharks, 44-25.

Vancouver 5, Winnipeg 3--Pavel Bure scored the tie-breaking goal with 3:33 left in regulation at Vancouver and the Canucks stretched their lead in the Smythe Division to 10 points over the Kings.

The slumping Jets have lost five of their last six games. They are in fourth place, six points behind the Kings.

Edmonton 4, Philadelphia 2--The Oilers rallied from an early 2-0 deficit at Edmonton to move to within two points of the second-place Kings in the Smythe Division.

Former King Bernie Nicholls scored the tie-breaking goal late in the second period.