NHL Three Stars For March

Boston Bruins right wing Jarome Iginla, Detroit Red Wings right wing Gustav Nyquist and Philadelphia Flyers center Claude Giroux have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the month of March.

FIRST STAR – JAROME IGINLA, RW, BOSTON BRUINS

Iginla led all players with 13 goals, scoring on a League-best 31.0% of his shots (13-of-42) to power the Bruins to a 15-1-1 record in March and the top spot in the NHL standings (52-17-6, 110 points). He recorded 17 points (13-4—17) in 17 games, including six multi-point performances and a six-game point streak March 9-18 (7-1—8). Iginla also posted four multi-goal games and scored five game-winning goals – March 4 vs. FLA, March 13 vs. PHX, March 15 vs. CAR, March 18 at NJ and March 29 at WSH – giving him eight such tallies this season, his most in one campaign since 2007-08 (9). The 36-year-old Edmonton native scored his 30th goal of the season March 29, reaching the milestone for the 12th time in his 17-year career. He also recorded his 560th career goal, tying Guy Lafleur for 24th in NHL history. Playing in his first season with the Bruins, Iginla has 30-31—61 in 75 games and is tied for third in the League with a +34 rating.

SECOND STAR – GUSTAV NYQUIST, RW, DETROIT RED WINGS

Nyquist ranked second in the NHL with 12 goals and tied for fifth with 18 points to help the Red Wings go 7-6-2 and move into the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference (35-26-14, 84 points). He found the back of the net in nine of 15 games, including a six-game goal streak March 16-25 (9-1—10), the longest by a Red Wings player since Daniel Cleary had an equal run Nov. 5-17, 2010 (8-2—10). Nyquist posted a career-high four points (1-3—4) March 7 vs. NJ and added three two-goal performances: March 18 vs. TOR, March 23 vs. MIN and March 25 at CBJ. He also chipped in his team-leading fifth game-winning goal of the season March 22 at MIN. The 24-year-old Halmstad, Sweden, native leads the League with 22 goals in 27 games since Jan. 20 and is currently on a nine-game point streak (11-2—13), the longest by a Red Wings player since Dec. 22, 2010-Jan. 10, 2011 (Henrik Zetterberg: 6-10—16 in 11 games). Playing in his third NHL season, all with the Red Wings, Nyquist leads the team with 27 goals and is tied for second with 45 points in 50 games.

THIRD STAR – CLAUDE GIROUX, C, PHILADELPHIA FLYERS

Giroux led all players with 15 assists and 21 points to help the Flyers complete a 9-3-2 month and maintain third place in the Metropolitan Division standings (39-27-8, 86 points). He posted at least one point in 11 of 14 games, including seven multi-point performances and three three-point efforts: March 2 at WSH (2-1—3), March 5 vs. WSH (2-1—3) and March 28 vs. TOR (1-2—3). Giroux also added two game-winning goals – March 18 vs. CHI and March 28 vs. TOR – giving him a career-high six such scores this season. The 26-year-old Hearst, Ont., native paces the Flyers and ranks third in the NHL with 25-53—78 in 74 games this season, including 14-27—41 in 33 games since Jan. 4. The Flyers are 19-2-1 this season when Giroux scores a goal and 32-13-3 when he records at least one point.