Flames Beat Blackhawks With Big 2nd

[March 17, 2008]  CHICAGO (AP) -- Jarome Iginla, Kristian Huselius and Dion Phaneuf scored second-period goals, and Miikka Kiprusoff made 34 saves in the Calgary Flames' 4-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.

Adrian Aucoin also scored for the Flames, who climbed into a three-way tie with idle Minnesota and Colorado for first place in the Northwest Division at 84 points.

Calgary's Owen Nolan and Alex Tanguay each had two assists.

Robert Lang and rookie Jonathan Toews each scored their 20th goals for the Blackhawks, who lost for the fifth time in six games (1-4-1).

Chicago remained seven points behind eighth-place Vancouver and the playoff cutoff in the Western Conference. The Blackhawks have nine games remaining.

Patrick Lalime started for Chicago and allowed four goals on 22 shots through two periods. Nikolai Khabibulin replaced Lalime to start the third and made five saves.

Khabibulin, the Blackhawks' No. 1 goalie and highest-paid player, dressed after missing 12 games due to back spasms.

Aucoin opened the scoring 1:51 in with a power-play goal on the Flames' first shot. His drive from the top of the slot was screened by Nolan and clanked in off the right post.

Toews tied it at 10:25 on Chicago's first shot, fooling Kiprusoff from the left circle with a with a low drive.

The Flames pounced on mistakes in the second period to build a 4-1 lead.

Iginla converted a breakaway 1:13 in to give Calgary a 2-1 lead after picking off defenseman Brent Seabrook's pass at center ice. Huselius made it a two-goal edge at 4:54.

Phaneuf extended Calgary's lead to 4-1 with 6:13 left in the second on a low shot from the right circle.

Lang tucked in a rebound of Dustin Byfuglien's shot at a 4:41 of the third to cut the Blackhawks' deficit to 4-2.

Notes: Iginla has five goals and three assists in four games. ... Chicago D Brent Sopel returned after missing 12 games with a broken wrist. ... Khabibulin dressed because rookie G Corey Crawford, who had been backing up Lalime, had the flu. As a technicality, Crawford was reassigned to Rockford (AHL) before the game.

[Associated Press; By THERESA BRADLEY]

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