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Stars Of The Week

by Paul on 03/22/10 at 12:39 PM ET
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NEW YORK (March 22, 2010)—Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne, New York Islanders center John Tavares and Anaheim Ducks right wing Teemu Selanne have been named the NHL ‘Three Stars’ for the week ending Mar. 21.

FIRST STAR—PEKKA RINNE, G, NASHVILLE PREDATORS

  Rinne posted a 4-0-0 record with a 1.22 goals-against average, .958 save percentage, two shutouts and a scoreless streak of 149:04, helping the Predators (42-26-5) rise to fifth place in the Western Conference standings. Rinne started the week by tying a season high with 42 saves and stopping all three shootout attempts in a 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers Mar. 16. He turned aside 17 shots in a 5-0 win over the Minnesota Wild Mar. 18 and posted his second consecutive shutout and 13th of his NHL career with 33 saves in a 1-0 overtime win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Mar. 20. Rinne finished the week with his sixth consecutive victory by stopping 23 shots in a 3-2 victory at St. Louis. The Kempele, Finland native improved to 28-13-4 with a 2.59 goals-against average, .908 save percentage and six shutouts in 50 appearances this season.

SECOND STAR—JOHN TAVARES, C, NEW YORK ISLANDERS

  Tavares led all NHL scorers last week with seven points (three goals, four assists) in three games. He began the week by tying an Islanders rookie record with five points (two goals, three assists) in a 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks Mar. 16. It marked the fourth time in NHL history that a first overall Entry Draft selection had tallied a five-point game in his rookie season, following Dale Hawerchuk (Winnipeg, 1981-82), Mario Lemieux (Pittsburgh, 1984-85) and Ilya Kovalchuk (Atlanta, 2001-02), and was the highest single-game point total by an NHL rookie since Philadelphia’s Alexandre Picard notched five assists against New Jersey on Feb. 1, 2007. Tavares added one goal and one assist in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks Mar. 19, raising his season points total to 21-22—43.

THIRD STAR—TEEMU SELANNE, RW, ANAHEIM DUCKS

  Selanne recorded four points (one goal, three assists) in three games, highlighted by a special milestone tally, as the Ducks (34-29-8) continued their Western Conference playoff push with three consecutive victories. Selanne recorded a pair of assists and a +3 rating in a 5-4 overtime victory over the New York Islanders Mar. 19 and notched his 600th career goal plus an assist in a 5-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche Mar. 21. Already the NHL’s active leader in goals, Selanne became the 18th player in NHL history to reach the 600-goal milestone. He is the third European-trained player do so, following Jaromir Jagr (Czech Republic) and Jari Kurri (Finland). The 39-year-old Helsinki native is one goal shy of tying Kurri (601) for most career goals by a Finnish-born player.

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