Malkin, Pacioretty and Dubnyk named NHL’s three stars of the week

NEW YORK, United Nations – Pittsburgh centre Evgeni Malkin has earned the NHL’s first star of the week after leading the Penguins to three victories in four games.

Montreal Canadiens wing Max Pacioretty was the second star, while Edmonton Oilers goaltender Devan Dubnyk claimed the third star.

Malkin led all skaters with seven assists and eight points as the Penguins (15-9-0, 30 points) re-claimed first place in the Metropolitan Division.

He posted a pair of assists in each of his first two games of the week — a 3-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks and a 4-0 win over the Washington Capitals Nov. 20.

Malkin then snapped a 15-game goal drought, scoring in a 4-3 win over the New York Islanders. He closed the week by collecting two assists, his fourth consecutive multi-point game, in a 3-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

Pacioretty led all players with five goals, including two-game winners, in three games to help the Canadiens (13-9-2, 28 points) pick up three victories.

Dubnyk backstopped the Oilers (7-15-2, 16 points) to a pair of wins, posting a 2-0-0 record with a 0.50 goals-against average, .974 save percentage and one shutout in helping the team extend its season-long winning streak to three games.