NHL’s Top Stars Highlight Exciting Week of Action

Another week of memorable NHL action has come and gone. The annual Winter Classic between the New York Rangers and Florida Panthers headlined the schedule, while Olympic rosters for the United States, Canada, Finland and Sweden were unveiled.

As the dust settled, the NHL announced its Three Stars for the week ending Jan. 4, highlighted by Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov, Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby and Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews.

Back-to-Back for Kucherov

For the second consecutive week, Kucherov’s brilliance was impossible to ignore, earning him repeat honors as the NHL’s First Star.

Kucherov’s performance over the past seven days was one for the ages. He notched 10 total points — three goals and seven assists — over the course of the Lightning’s three games in California this past week. It was his efforts that helped Tampa Bay sweep those three contests and move into first place in both the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference.

The impressive play began on New Year’s Eve against the Anaheim Ducks, when the 32-year-old from Russia scored one goal and assisted on another. He improved on that strong display with an even better outing against the Los Angeles Kings the next day, scoring another goal while assisting on two more tallies. He capped it all off with a five-point performance — the eighth of his illustrious career — against the San Jose Sharks on Jan. 3 in a 7-3 win for Tampa Bay.

Crosby’s Still Got It

Jan 4, 2026; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) awaits the face-off against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the third period at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

As the Penguins continue to surprise the greater hockey world with their sustained success, Crosby has done much of the same. In four games over the course of the past week, Crosby scored four goals and assisted on four others to help Pittsburgh move into the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

On Dec. 30, it was his opening goal against the Carolina Hurricanes that enabled the Penguins to roar out to a 5-1 triumph. He then posted three consecutive multi-point performances against the Detroit Red Wings on Jan. 1 and Jan. 3, and again versus the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 4. All in all, Crosby’s steady play at 38 years old — he has accumulated 47 points through 41 games — has allowed the Penguins to stay in the postseason hunt.

History for Matthews

Jan 3, 2026; Elmont, New York, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) celebrates after scoring a goal against the New York Islanders during the second period at UBS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Salus-Imagn Images | Thomas Salus-Imagn Images

Matthews’ statistics over the past week might not pop off the page compared to what Kucherov and Crosby produced, but that’s not why he was named the league’s Third Star. The explanation lies in him surpassing Mats Sundin to become the Maple Leafs’ all-time leading goal scorer, a feat he accomplished in the team’s 4-3 overtime loss to the New York Islanders on Jan. 3. His scoring in that game also helped him reach the 20-goal milestone for the 10th consecutive season.

Should the Maple Leafs pull themselves out of the pit they are in at the moment, more weeks like this past one from Matthews will be needed.

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