Penguins’ Aubin Makes Most of Chance in Goal

For now, there’s a new No. 1 goalie for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

In his first game in the new role, Jean-Sebastien Aubin made 37 saves Monday night in a 3-0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks at Pittsburgh.

Aubin had a spectacular game on the same day he learned of his change in status. Top goalie Tom Barrasso has been granted a leave of absence to return home to Massachusetts to spend time with his father, gravely ill with brain cancer.

Coach Herb Brooks refused to say that Aubin is now his first choice, probably deflecting pressure from a player who has played in only 48 NHL games.

The shutout was Aubin’s second this season and fourth of his career.

Aubin said it doesn’t matter whether he is designated No. 1 or not.

“All I think about is the next game,” he said. “Work as hard as I can, get my rest, then be ready to play the next game. I don’t want to think too much ahead. If you think too much, it’s not good.”

Canuck Coach Marc Crawford said, “We played the way we were supposed to and the way we have to play [but] their goalie was outstanding. That’s going to happen. We did a lot of things well but their goalie wound up winning the game for them.”

Montreal 4, Florida 1--Jesse Belanger scored two goals--his first in the NHL in almost four years--and added two assists to lead the Canadiens over the Panthers at Montreal.

Belanger, recalled from Quebec of the AHL prior to the game, hadn’t scored in the NHL since April 6, 1995, when he was with the Vancouver Canucks.

“I wasn’t expecting that,” Belanger said of his offensive output. “It was pretty fun. I had the crowd yelling my name behind the bench and they were cheering for me. It’s hard to know how to react to that but I’m really happy about it.”

Belanger was also a member of the Stanley Cup champion Canadiens in 1992-93.

Detroit 3, Phoenix 1--Igor Larionov, Pat Verbeek and Brendan Shanahan scored during first-period power plays, and the Red Wings won at Phoenix for their third victory in a row.

Goalie Ken Wregget, spotted an early lead, stayed focused and stopped 28 shots to extend his unbeaten streak to six games.

Carolina 5, Toronto 2--Ron Francis scored two goals and sparked a four-goal outburst in the first 14 minutes as the Hurricanes won at Toronto. The Leafs have lost four in a row for the first time since April 1998.