Blues Encouraged by Tie With Red Wings

The injury-riddled St. Louis Blues proved they can still play with the NHL’s elite.

St. Louis, playing without All-Star defensemen Al MacInnis and Chris Pronger, allowed a late goal by Detroit’s Brendan Shanahan on Saturday but managed a 2-2 tie with the Red Wings at St. Louis.

With the tie, Detroit’s Central Division lead over St. Louis remains one point.

Shanahan scored on a rebound with 49.6 seconds left after goaltender Roman Turek made the initial save.

Nashville 3, San Jose 0--Tomas Vokoun got his fourth career shutout and Scott Walker got credit for a deflection goal as the Predators extended the Sharks’ winless streak to seven games with a victory at San Jose.

Toronto 3, Vancouver 3--Mats Sundin scored twice, and Curtis Joseph made 30 saves as the Maple Leafs rallied from a three-goal deficit to earn a tie at Vancouver, Canada.

Pittsburgh 6, Calgary 3--Jaromir Jagr scored three times, including the go-ahead goal midway through the third period, and Mario Lemieux had the tying goal as the Penguins stormed past the Flames at Pittsburgh.

N.Y. Rangers 3, Ottawa 2--Petr Nedved and Sandy McCarthy scored goals 1:12 apart in the third period as the Rangers rallied at Ottawa to end a four-game losing streak.

Montreal 3, Phoenix 3--Saku Koivu scored twice as the Canadiens rallied from a three-goal deficit for the tie at Phoenix.

Tampa Bay 4, Columbus 1--Martin St. Louis scored a pair of power-play goals in the third period for the Lightning at Tampa, Fla.

Atlanta 7, Boston 5--Andrew Brunette scored a power-play goal with 21 seconds left as the Thrashers overcame five Bruin power-play goals for the victory at Boston.

New Jersey 3, Philadelphia 2--John Madden scored with 47 seconds left to lead the Devils at Philadelphia. The Devils won their seventh consecutive game.

Dallas 3, Colorado 2--Brad Lukowich scored with 3:13 left in overtime for the Stars at Dallas. Joe Sakic’s 40th goal late in the second period pulled the Avalanche into a 2-2 tie. Rob Blake also scored for Colorado.

Around the League

The St. Louis Blues are still interested in acquiring All-Star center Eric Lindros despite Philadelphia Flyer General Manager Bob Clarke’s rejection of their first offer. St. Louis General Manager Larry Pleau said that he is still optimistic about making a deal for Lindros. . . . Teemu Selanne, who had minor knee surgery a day after being traded to the San Jose Sharks by the Mighty Ducks, said he plans to begin skating again next week. The Sharks say they expect Selanne to play within two weeks, but they won’t set a target date until next week at the earliest. Shark Gary Stuart will sit out Monday’s home game against Montreal because he is recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery. . . . Phoenix Coyote winger Claude Lemieux may be back in the lineup before the playoffs begin. Lemieux visited a foot specialist Thursday, who determined the severity of ligament damage to his right ankle was not as bad as initially predicted. He will not get a cast on the ankle and the original prognosis of returning in six to eight weeks has been upgraded to three to four weeks.