NHL ROUNDUP : No Deal for Gartner, Who Is Big Deal for Rangers

As Wednesday began, Mike Gartner was hearing reports that he and Ranger goalie Glenn Healy were about to be traded.

As it ended, Gartner found himself being mentioned in the same sentence as some NHL Hall of Famers, present and future--Gordie Howe, Wayne Gretzky, Marcel Dionne, Phil Esposito, Mike Gartner , Bobby Hull.

That was because Gartner, a quiet gunner at right wing for the Rangers, scored his 611th goal to move past Hull into fifth place on the all-time list as New York beat the Washington Capitals, 7-5, at Halifax, Canada.

He is 106 goals behind Esposito and not about to be traded.

“I’m not actively trying to trade anybody,” Ranger General Manager Neil Smith said. “I am not (shopping) his services around the NHL.”

Gartner, 34, scored his 28th goal of the season at 11:39 of the second period when he slipped his own rebound between the legs of Capital goalie Olaf Kolzig.

“Not too many people can say they scored their 611th goal in Halifax,” said Gartner, who got a standing ovation from a crowd of 9,200.

“I really appreciated that,” said Gartner, who has shunned the spotlight during his 15-year career. “It was a very nice thing to do, a nice touch of class.”

Detroit 5, Calgary 1--Dino Ciccarelli scored a goal and became the 40th player to record 1,000 points in helping the Red Wings at Calgary.

Hartford 4, Tampa Bay 1--The Whalers got four consecutive goals in the first 10 minutes at Hartford, with U.S. Olympian Ted Crowley getting his first in the NHL.

Toronto 4, Dallas 2--Dave Andreychuk broke a seven-game drought with two goals to lead the Maple Leafs at Toronto.

Montreal 7, St. Louis 2--Lyle Odelein had three power-play goals to lead the Canadiens at Montreal.

Florida 5, Edmonton 3--Dave Lowry scored two goals as the Panthers won at Edmonton.

Vancouver 5, New York Islanders 4--The Canucks rallied from a 3-1 deficit at Vancouver with goals by Cliff Ronning, Murray Craven, Pavel Bure and Adrien Plavsic.