NHL ROUNDUP : Penguins Win, Clinch a Spot in Playoffs, 6-3

A couple of months ago it appeared the Pittsburgh Penguins might not qualify for the NHL playoffs. Their star, Mario Lemieux, was having more back trouble and apparently some of the players were unhappy with Coach Scotty Bowman.

Now, Lemieux is healthy, no one is sniping at the coach and, if there is a postseason tournament, the Penguins will be there to defend their Stanley Cup.

This was settled Saturday night when Lemieux scored his 43rd goal and the Penguins beat the Montreal Canadiens, 6-3. The Penguins clinched fourth place in the Patrick Division.

It is the first time in 10 years the Penguins have qualified for the playoffs in consecutive seasons.

Montreal goalie Patrick Roy entered the game with a 2.29 goals-against average. He gave up four goals on nine shots in less than 23 minutes before leaving.

Detroit 3, Vancouver 1--Jimmy Carson scored a goal and assisted on the other two at Detroit to help the Red Wings move closer to the Norris Division title.

The Red Wings, with four games to play, need only one more point after winning their 40th game. They also moved to within two points of the Canucks in the battle for the best record in the Campbell Conference.

Calgary 4, Minnesota 3--The Flames kept their playoff hopes alive, but not before wasting a 3-0 lead at Calgary.

The Flames, who trail fourth-place Winnipeg by four points in the Smythe Division with four games to play, scored three goals before the game was 10 minutes old.

But after the North Stars caught up, they needed Robert Reichel’s goal with 9:09 left to win it.

Toronto 3, St. Louis 2--Guy Larose scored the first goal and assisted on the other two at St. Louis and the Maple Leafs kept their playoff hopes alive.

With four games to play, the Maple Leafs trail Minnesota by only two points in the battle for the final spot in the Norris Division.

The Blues’ Brett Hull, the league’s leading goal scorer, sat out his seventh consecutive game because of back spasms.

With a victory tonight at Chicago, the Maple Leafs could catch the North Stars. The North Stars’ next game is against Buffalo on Tuesday night.

Chicago 3, Hartford 1--With Jeremy Roenick scoring his 52nd goal and assisting on another at Hartford, the Blackhawks moved closer to clinching second place in the Norris Division by beating the Whalers.

Boston 4, Buffalo 3--U.S. Olympian Steve Heinze scored his first NHL goal at 3:59 of overtime at Boston to give the Bruins the victory.

New York Islanders 4, New York Rangers 1--The Rangers have the best record in the league, but they are can’t win in Uniondale, N.Y. The Rangers haven’t won in their last 10 games at Nassau Coliseum.

New Jersey 5, Quebec 2--Claude Vilgrain and Valeri Zalepukin scored 68 seconds apart at East Rutherford, N.J., to lead the Devils.