Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin, Red Wings goalie Petr Mrazek and Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie have been named the NHL’s three stars for the past week.
From NHL.com:
Ovechkin tied for first in the NHL with five goals in four games to power the League-leading Capitals (32-7-3, 67 points) to four straight wins. ... He capped the week by again scoring twice, including his 500th and 501st NHL goals, in a 7-1 win over the Ottawa Senators Jan. 10. In doing so, Ovechkin (801 GP) became the fifth-fastest player in NHL history to reach the 500-goal milestone, behind Wayne Gretzky (575 GP), Mario Lemieux (605 GP), Mike Bossy (647 GP) and Brett Hull (693 GP).
Mrazek went 3-0-0 with a 0.67 goals-against average, .978 save percentage and one shutout to backstop the Red Wings (22-13-7, 51 points) to three straight wins for the week as well as their fourth consecutive victory overall, all on the road.
Barrie led all defensemen and shared second in the League with 3-3-6 in four games to lift the Avalanche (21-19-3, 45 points) to six of a possible eight points.
Ovechkin received even more praise this morning from Capitals owner Ted Leonsis.
“As a fan first and an owner second, we are lucky to have Alex in Washington,” Leonsis wrote in a blog post. “There are and have been a lot of great athletes in our city, but none like Alex. He’s a generational talent.”
Among active NHLers, only Jaromir Jagr and Jarome Iginla have more career goals than Ovechkin. Jagr has 737 in 1,589 games; Iginla has 601 in 1,435. Ovechkin, as mentioned, has only played 801 games.