NHL ROUNDUP : Rangers’ Unbeaten Streak at 13

Even Mike Richter knew the New York Rangers almost did themselves in.

“We tightened up and almost gave it away,” he said Tuesday night after the Rangers held on for a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens at New York that extended their unbeaten streak to 13 games, their longest in 21 seasons.

Montreal came back after trailing, 5-2, and appeared to tie the score on Gilbert Dionne’s shot from the point with 3.2 seconds to play, but a late whistle on an offsides call disallowed it.

The Rangers, on the seventh-longest unbeaten streak in club history, are 11-0-2 since Oct. 22, when they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-1. The last time the Rangers went unbeaten this long was a 16-game streak in 1972-73. The club record of 19 was set in 1939-40, when the Rangers last won the Stanley Cup.

*

Hartford 2, Florida 1--Robert Kron scored at 3:55 of overtime at Miami to give Coach Pierre McGuire his first NHL victory. McGuire, a longtime assistant, lost his first three games after taking over from Paul Holmgren on Nov. 16.

*

New Jersey 1, Quebec 1--The Devils’ Bruce Driver scored on a low shot from the point at 12:38 of the third period to get the tie at Quebec. Jocelyn Thibault, the Nordiques’ 18-year-old rookie goaltender, made 33 saves. Martin Brodeur of the Devils, who is 21, had 25 saves.

*

San Jose 6, Detroit 4--Rob Gaudreau scored the winning goal with 7:33 left at San Jose in the Sharks’ first win over the Red Wings.