DETROIT, March 7 (UPI) -- Sergei Fedorov recorded a hat trick and rookie Henrik Zetterberg scored twice Friday night to lead Detroit past St. Louis, 7-2, and to a four-point lead over the Blues in the race for the Central Division title.
After missing the last two games with a back injury, Fedorov returned in style by scoring on his first two shots. He completed his second hat trick of the season and sixth of his career with his 27th goal at 4:42 of the second period to chase Blues goaltender Fred Brathwaite.
Fedorov later picked up an assist to complete a four-point night. He has seven goals and 13 assists during an 11-game points streak.
Tomas Holmstrom scored a goal and set up another and defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom collected four assists for the Red Wings, who extended their winning streak to nine games. They are 11
0-1 in their last 12 overall and 8
0-1 in their past nine at home.
Former Blue Curtis Joseph made 29 saves to raise his record to 8-1-0 in his last nine games.
Shjon Podein and Pavol Demitra scored for St. Louis, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.
The Blues failed to gain a boost with the return of Keith Tkachuk and Doug Weight to the lineup. Tkachuk served a four-game suspension for cross-checking Minnesota's Wes Walz on Feb. 23 while Weight missed 10 games with a broken bone in his face.
