Flyers Tie Thrashers

Keith Primeau scored his 200th NHL goal with 7:36 left in the third period to give the Philadelphia Flyers a 2-2 tie with the Atlanta Thrashers on Saturday night.

Primeau, standing alone in the crease, poked the puck past goalie Damian Rhodes` stick after taking a pass from Ruslan Fedotenko.

Atlanta`s Steve Staios had a goal and an assist and Denny Lambert also scored for the second-year Thrashers. Atlanta has 39 points to match its total for all of its expansion season.

Simon Gagne also scored for the Flyers, who outshot the Thrashers 39-20, but failed to convert on six power plays including one in overtime when Atlanta had a 4-2 shots advantage.

Rhodes who was chased after Philadelphia scored three goals in the first two minutes of a 6-4 win at Atlanta on Friday night, was much better in this game, turning away 37 shots.

Staios scored on the Thrashers` first shot of the game on a power play at 10:07 of the first period. He threaded a slap shot through a screen and over goalie`s Roman Cechmanek glove.

Lambert made it 2-0 with his first goal of the season at 8:11 of the second period. Cechmanek kicked out an attempt by Stephen Guolla, but the puck bounced right to Lambert, who scored from inside the left circle.

Gagne countered 3:40 later, scoring from close range off a pass from P.J. Stock.

The Flyers almost scored another goal when Daymond Langkow hit the post with 20 seconds left in the second period.

Game notes
Atlanta defenseman Adam Burt had surgery for a herniated disc in his lower back Saturday in Atlanta. He is expected to be sidelined for about six weeks. ... Atlanta`s Ray Ferraro and Donald Audette each had an assist. The line of Ferraro, Audette and Andrew Brunette has 15 points in the past six games. ... Defenseman Dan McGillis played in his 200th game with the Flyers. ... Cechmanek is 6-0-3 in his last nine games.

(Copyright 2001 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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Author: AP