Coyotes End Stay With a Win

Defeating the Carolina Hurricanes sure beat playing cards and watching movies for the Phoenix Coyotes.

In a rare weekday afternoon game, Travis Green, Mika Alatalo and Keith Tkachuk scored 6 1/2 minutes apart Thursday in the second period of a 4-2 victory at Raleigh, N.C.

A 20-inch snowstorm paralyzed the area and forced the postponement of the game, originally scheduled for Tuesday night. The snow stranded the Coyotes in their hotel--only three miles from the arena--for more than two days.

“The hotel ran out of beer pretty early so that was that,” Phoenix goaltender Sean Burke said. “We were bored, but it was good for us. We needed some rest. Maybe it came at a good time.”

Coyote Coach Bob Francis added that his team took advantage of some much-needed bonding time to extend its winning streak to three games with its first victory on the road since Jan. 4 at Detroit.

“It could have been worse. You could have been doing it with your in-laws,” Francis said, joking. “It gave us some time to be alone.”

Carolina’s goodwill gesture of two-for-one tickets and complimentary tickets to two upcoming games helped draw a crowd of 9,675, despite icy roads.

The Coyotes had been in town since Monday afternoon, but couldn’t leave for their game Wednesday in Atlanta since Raleigh-Durham International Airport was closed, prompting Thursday’s makeup.

Philadelphia 4, Florida 2--Keith Primeau marked his return to the ice with a fight, and Flyer teammate Eric Lindros made a stirring comeback from a concussion with a goal, some crushing hits and a fight of his own in a fight-filled game at Philadelphia.

Chicago 6, Colorado 4--Tony Amonte had two goals and two assists at Chicago as the Blackhawks ended a three-game losing streak.

Toronto 4, N.Y. Rangers 3--Steve Thomas scored a power-play goal with one minute to play at New York, ending the Rangers’ seven-game winning streak.

Pittsburgh 4, Atlanta 1--Jaromir Jagr, who returned to the Penguins’ lineup after sitting out four games because of a muscle pull in his rib cage, scored a power-play goal in the first period at Pittsburgh.

*

Around the League

Thursday night’s game at Boston between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens was postponed because the Canadiens were still stuck in Raleigh, N.C., because of a snowstorm. The game was rescheduled for March 2. . . . Goaltender Grant Fuhr of the Calgary Flames, playing in his 19th NHL season, was assigned to Saint John of the American Hockey League for a conditioning assignment. Fuhr, 37, had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Dec. 22. . . . A judge in Ottawa, Canada, postponed a decision on whether an Ottawa Senator season-ticket holder can go ahead with his lawsuit against Alexei Yashin, who is holding out. Yashin, who has been practicing in Switzerland, was suspended for the season by the Senators after refusing to honor the last year of his $3.6-million contract.