Fedorov Provides Winner

It didn’t take Sergei Fedorov very long Friday night to show why the NHL’s new four-on-four overtime format is ideal for players like him.

Fedorov scored 36 seconds into overtime as the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins, 3-2, at Detroit.

“It seems like I have more time to work the puck,” Fedorov said after he broke in with a pass from Steve Yzerman, got around defenseman Jiri Slegr and took a shot that dribbled between the legs of goaltender Jean-Sebastien Aubin.

“I just tried to shoot it as hard as I could,” Fedorov said. “I was going to try a backhand shot, but I’m glad I was able to get a shot between his legs.”

Chicago 5, N.Y. Islanders 0--Tony Amonte scored two goals and Steve Passmore got his first NHL shutout as the Blackhawks used a four-goal first period to get their first victory at Chicago this season.

The Blackhawks, whose nine-game winless streak at home (0-6-3) opening a season was their longest in 63 years, gave fans at the United Center something to cheer about with a scoring deluge against Felix Potvin, who had blanked the Carolina Hurricanes two days earlier.

Passmore (3-2-1), starting in place of the slumping Jocelyn Thibault, stopped 24 shots. He held on to his shutout when an apparent New York goal with three seconds left was wiped out because a penalty was called before the puck went into the net.

St. Louis 2, Edmonton 2--Little-used Chris McAlpine scored for the Blues with 5:12 to play in the third period at St. Louis.

The Blues had been 3-0 against the Oilers this season. Edmonton (0-6-2) is the only NHL team that does not have a road victory.

New Jersey 5, Atlanta 1--Brendan Morrison had a goal and two assists at East Rutherford, N.J.

Morrison and Patrik Elias, contract holdouts who both came to terms with the Devils on Oct. 25, scored their first goals.

Tampa Bay 4, Buffalo 2--Pavel Kubina scored the go-ahead goal late in the second period and Dan Cloutier stopped 28 shots at Tampa, Fla., as the Lightning ended the Sabres’ four-game winning streak.

Vancouver 3, Phoenix 2--Adrian Aucoin, Markus Naslund and Peter Schaefer of the Canucks scored during a second-period span of 1:43 at Phoenix.

Around the League

The NHL is assessing each of its teams $10 million for the war chest that Commissioner Gary Bettman wants as financial protection against a possible lockout or strike in five years. Bettman, who presided over a three-month lockout at the start of the 1994-95 season, was given owners’ approval for the fund in December. The league is requiring teams to make their contribution to the fund by April 15, 2003, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing by Florida Panther parent Boca Resorts Inc. . . . Joe Murphy, a right wing who has scored 20 or more goals in seven of his 10 full NHL seasons, signed a one-year contract with the Boston Bruins. . . . The Chicago Blackhawks, looking for some scoring punch to climb out of last place, acquired center Michael Nylander from the Tampa Bay Lightning for defensemen Bryan Muir and Reid Simpson.