Shanahan hospitalized as Rangers roughed up
The New York Rangers were outworked and overmatched all day by the hapless Philadelphia Flyers.
Watching 38-year-old teammate Brendan Shanahan wheeled off the ice on a stretcher in the third period did nothing to change their fortunes.
Scottie Upshall scored a key goal in his Philadelphia debut and the physical Flyers beat the host Rangers, 5-3, yesterday, but most of the postgame talk regarded Shanahan, who was injured in a violent collision with Flyers forward Mike Knuble.
"We were down already, but we wanted to try and win it for him," said Rangers captain Jaromir Jagr, himself a target of the hard-hitting Flyers. "It happens in hockey but it's tough to see."
The initial reports on Shanahan were good. X-rays and a CT scan were negative, but he was to be kept overnight for observation at St. Vincent's Hospital. The Rangers said he was alert and moving his extremities.
"You're his friend first, teammate second," defenseman Aaron Ward. "You feel for him, but he's a resilient man."
The right side of Knuble's face was swollen, and general manager Paul Holmgren said the forward fractured his cheekbone and orbital bone. Knuble is expected to have surgery in a few days, once the swelling goes down. There is no timetable for his return to the lineup.
Devils 2, Islanders 0 -- Martin Brodeur stopped 26 shots in his NHL-best 11th shutout of the season and third against the Islanders in leading New Jersey over New York in Uniondale, N.Y.
Brodeur has earned all of New Jersey's 36 victories this season and kept the Devils from having their first regulation losing streak since a three-game skid in December. Brodeur is third in NHL history with 91 shutouts, three behind George Hainesworth and 12 in back of Terry Sawchuk.
Hurricanes 5, Canadiens 3 -- Rod Brind'Amour scored his second goal of the game, and the 400th of his career, late in the second period to lift visiting Carolina over struggling Montreal.
Maple Leafs 4, Oilers 3 -- Mats Sundin and John Pohl and each scored twice and host Toronto held on for a victory.
Marc Pouliot scored twice and Steve Staios also had a goal for the Oilers .
Panthers 5, Lightning 4 -- Nathan Horton scored the winning goal 29 seconds into overtime as host Florida defeated Tampa Bay.
Martin St. Louis scored two goals for Tampa Bay. .
Senators 5, Thrashers 3 -- Dean McAmmond took a pass from Jason Spezza and beat Atlanta goaltender Kari Lehtonen with just more than four minutes remaining in regulation to cap a third-period comeback and lift host Ottawa to its fourth straight victory.
Wild 4, Predators 1 -- Marian Gaborik broke a 1-1 tie with a power-play goal at 11:59 of the third period, and visiting Minnesota ruined Peter Forsberg's Nashville debut with a victory over the Predators.
Red Wings 4, Coyotes 1 -- Henrik Zetterberg had his first career hat trick to lead Detroit over Phoenix in Glendale, Ariz.
Flames 5, Avalanche 2 -- Kristian Huselius scored twice and neatly set up Dion Phaneuf’s tiebreaking goal as host Calgary beat Colorado.
Ducks 3, Kings 2
