Today the National Hockey League announced their Three Stars of the Week for the week of December 15th through 21st.
First Star – Connor McDavid (C – EDM)
- McDavid, who scored in all four of his appearances and posted a trio of multi-point performances, registered a League-leading 5-5—10 to earn his second straight “First Star” honor, overtake Nathan MacKinnon in the Art Ross Trophy race and lift the Oilers (18-13-6, 42 points) into third place in the Pacific Division via a 3-1-0 week. He notched 2-2—4, his third four-point effort of the season (also Dec. 4 vs. SEA: 3-1—4 and Dec. 11 vs. DET: 0-4—4), in a 6?4 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins Dec. 16. McDavid followed that with 1-1—2, including his 19th career shorthanded goal, in a 3-1 victory over the Boston Bruins Dec. 18 before potting one of Edmonton’s two goals in a 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild Dec. 20. He finished the week with 1-2—3, his 20th multi-point outing of the campaign, in a 4-3 triumph against the Vegas Golden Knights Dec. 21. The 28-year-old McDavid, spurred by a 10-game point streak dating to Dec. 4 (12-14—26), paces the NHL with 23-39—62 through 37 total contests this season. He also ranks among the 2025-26 leaders in assists (1st; 39), power-play assists (1st; 20), power-play points (1st; 27), goals (t-3rd; 23) and shots on goal (10th; 122).
Second Star – Linus Ullmark (G – OTT)
- Ullmark went 3-0-0 with a 1.32 goals-against average, .943 save percentage and one shutout to guide the Senators (18-13-4, 40 points) to a perfect week as they climbed within one point of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. He denied 23 shots as Ottawa rallied for a 3-2 overtime victory against the Winnipeg Jets Dec. 15. Ullmark then earned his 13th career shutout with 25 saves in a 4-0 triumph over the Pittsburgh Penguins Dec. 18. He ended the week with 18 stops in a 6-2 win versus his former team, the Boston Bruins, Dec. 21. The 32-year-old Ullmark, aided by an 8-3-0 record in his last 11 starts dating to Nov. 20 (2.54 GAA, .899 SV%, 1 SO), shares sixth place in the NHL with 14 wins through 26 total appearances this season (14-8-4, 2.85 GAA, .884 SV%, 1 SO).
Third Star – Zach Werenski (D – CLB)
- Werenski tied for the League lead with five goals in three contests (5-2—7) to help the Blue Jackets (14-15-6, 34 points) complete a 1-2-0 week. He registered 2-1—3, including an assist on Adam Fantilli’s overtime winner, in a 4-3 victory against the Anaheim Ducks Dec. 16. Werenski then scored twice in a 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild Dec. 18 to become the first defenseman in franchise history with back-to-back multi-goal games. He added his third straight multi-point performance, and 14th of 2025-26, with 1-1—2 in a 4-3 loss to the Ducks Dec. 20. The 28-year-old Werenski, who owns 5-5—10 during a five-game point streak dating to Dec. 11, places among the top NHL blueliners in goals (t-1st; 14), points (2nd; 40) and assists (t-4th; 26) through 35 total contests this season.
*All Graphics courtesy of the NHL, Edmonton Oilers, and Ottawa Senators.
*Player Profiles written by NHL PR Staff.
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