NHL: 3 Stars and 3 Bums of the Week

We have survived another exciting week of NHL hockey, and once again, we were blessed with many great performances, and of course, plenty of bums. 

A look at the standings and we see that Philadelphia has taken the top spot in the East, and in the West, the Minnesota Wild are the top dogs. 

Wait, that can’t be right. The Wild? First place in the West.  

We keep hearing that the Wild are in first place but have yet to confirm that this is true. 

Which three players had the best weeks? Which the worst? 

Here are the three stars and bums of the past week. 

As usual, please send your praises and hate mail to the comment sections below.  

Who was missed? Who caught your eye for bad or good this week? Who made you throw your stuffed Milan Lucic doll at the television? 

Oh, and for all the St. Louis fans out there who berate me at all turns, yes, Brian Elliot is having a great season.

Third Star: John Carlson

The young defenseman was dishing out the puck this week. Perhaps he was feeling the holiday spirit and believes that giving is better than receiving. 

In his four games this week  he dished out seven assists and added a goal for eight points. Seven assists in four games is not too shabby and is the definition of a puck-moving-defenseman. 

When asked about Carlson’s week Ilya Kovalchuk was heard to say “What’s an assist?” 

Note, that last quote may have been invented by the author.

Second Star: Patrick Sharp

The Blackhawks keep piling up goals this season  and Patrick Sharp, the somewhat forgotten star on their roster, had a great week.

In four games he scored four big goals and added three assists for seven points. All that and his wife gave birth to a baby. That’s a pretty good week. Perhaps  we can start calling that the Patrick Sharp hat trick. 

Goals, assists and a baby.

There's a joke to be made here about slipping one past the goalie, but this is a family slideshow.

First Star: Claude Giroux

Did you know that Claude Giroux was leading the league in scoring? It’s true; he is.

He’s doing it somewhat quietly despite playing on the best team in the East. 

This last week was particularly good for Giroux who in four games potted two goals, six assists for eight points as the Flyers took over first place from their good friends in Pittsburgh. 

Giroux’s emergence this year makes you think that the Flyers knew what they were doing when they shipped off Mike Richards and Jeff Carter this summer.

Third Bum: Chris Pronger's Head

Love him or hate him, and let’s face it, most of you hate him, Chris Pronger is entertaining.

He has battled a lot of nagging injuries this season, and this past week, the Flyers announced he was out indefinitely due to concussion-like symptoms. 

This, the week before HBO cameras are rolling in the Flyers' locker room. 

Pronger’s head is going to rob us all of some pretty entertaining behind-the-scenes footage. 

Bum.

Second Bum: Drew Doughty

Remember how the Los Angeles Kings were desperate to sign Doughty this offseason? They didn’t want to lose what many thought was the next great defenseman. 

Despite the fact he had regressed, the Kings opened the vault and gave him a king’s ransom. Get it? King’s Ransom? He plays for the Kings?

The Kings lost four games this week and the vultures are circling. Doughty, for his part, had one assist in those four games. That’s it, nothing more. 

Bum.

First Bum: Cam Ward

The once promising goalie for the Hurricanes has struggled this year and this week was par for the course. Ward played in three games and gave up 13 goals.  

He gave up those goals while putting up a .850 save percentage.  

Things got real heated Friday when he was pulled against Winnipeg and threw a tantrum on the bench. He looked like a kid that found out the store was sold out of Pokemon cards.

It will get better Cam; it has to.

Bum.