NHL Star Power Index Alex Ovechkin joins 800-goal club Kris Letang makes miraculous return

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Welcome to the NHL Star Power Index: A weekly gauge of the players who are controlling substantial buzz around the league. When a player is included on this list it may not be a good thing -- it means that they are capturing a large amount of the hockey world's attention.  These players are in no particular order when it comes to the amount of buzz that they're creating. We'll revisit the Star Power Index every week throughout the regular season.  WAS  LW  #8  G  20  A  14  +/-  -8  At 37, is racking up milestone after milestone. On Tuesday, Ovechkin joined Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe as the  .  Ovechkin achieved the feat in dramatic fashion as he Will Smith Jersey  recorded a hat trick in a 7-3 win over the . His historic 800th career goal came at the 6:34 mark of the third period when he deposited a juicy rebound past Blackhawks goaltender .  IT'S HISTORY, BABES!   Washington Capitals (@Capitals)  The star is now just two goals away from pa sing Howe for second place on the league's all-time goals list. Once Ovechkin pa ses Howe, only Gretzky will stand in Ovechkin's way of becoming the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. It's certainly a task that the Capitals legend is capable of succeeding at.  Ovechkin has tallied 20 goals in 31 games throughout the 2022-23 season thus far. The Capitals star is currently on pace to score 53 goals (0.65 goals-per-game) this season a suming he suits up for all 82 regular season games. Ovechkin is currently 94 goals from tying Gretzky's all-time goals record of 894.  This is one of the most gifted goal scorers  Carl Grundstrom Jersey in the history of the sport. As he continues to achieve more historic milestones, it's important to remember that hockey fans are being treated to greatne s even in the later stages of Ovechkin's career.  PIT  D  #58  G  1  A  11  +/-  -7  Just 12 days after suffering a stroke, was back in the lineup for the over the weekend. Letang logged a team-high 22:14 of ice time in the Penguins' 3-1 win over the . The veteran defenseman mi sed just five games while he was out of the lineup.  58    Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins)  "Mentally, I feel good to be back, to be honest," . "It's always hard to be on the sidelines. I know health comes first... We're taking all the time we need to figure this thing out. Like [Vyas] said, when I feel ready to go and practice like I did today, he's going to give me the green light, if it's safe to do."  The Penguins defenseman previously had a stroke during the 2013-2014 season and mi Brandon Coe Jersey  sed more than two months of action in that instance. Letang also logged 27:35 of ice time and registered a shot-on-goal in a 2-1 win over the on Monday. If no one knew any better, it would certainly be hard to tell that this was the same player that had a scary medical condition just two weeks ago.  CAR  G  #52  Record  7-1-4  GAA  2.02  Save %  92.6  Veteran goaltender has only appeared in eight games this season due to a lower-body injury. In Andersen's absence, rookie has really thrived between the pipes.  Kochetkov, who selected with the No. 36 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft by the , has compiled a 7-1-4 record to go along with a 2.02 goals-against-average (third in the NHL) and a .926 save percentage (tied for third in the NHL). The Ru sian product also has recorded back-to-back shutouts over his last two starts.  Kochetkov put together a 27-save performance in a 1-0 win over the on Tuesday.  Another perfect game for the kid    Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes)  Kochetkov joined Detroit Red Wings goalie and netminder as the only three goaltenders in the NHL to record three shutouts this season.  Even though he had surrendered four goals against the in his start prior to the two shutouts, Kochetkov is still having an absolutely sensational month. He's been victorious in four of his five starts while maintaining an impre sive 1.60 goals-against-average and .940 save percentage.  Andersen, who is Luke Kunin Jersey  dealing with a lower-body injury, practiced for the first time last week. It's certainly going to be interesting to see what Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour does in net when Andersen is healthy enough to play considering how well Kochetkov has played in his absence.  WPG  D  #44  G  5  A  27  +/-  +11  is doing something special for the Winnipeg Jets. He's a defenseman leading his team in points.  Morri sey currently leads the Jets with 32 points (5 goals & 27 a sists), which happens to be ahead of dynamic goal scorers like and . In addition, the veteran blue-liner also ranks third in the NHL in points behind only (38) and (33), who are having career seasons thus far.  Morri sey has really been on fire as of late, especially on the offensive end of the ice. His most impre sive showing came last Friday against the Chicago Blackhawks when Morri sey tallied two points in a 3-1 win.  Morri sey's best play came in the opening period of that particular Teemu Selanne Jersey  contest:  JMo holds the line and Fetts makes them pay    Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets)  The 2013 first round pick also earned the primary a sist on a second period power-play goal from .  Morri sey is already just five points away from tying his career-high in points (37), which he set during the 2021-22 campaign. As should come as no surprise, he's been one of the true catalysts for a Jets team that is having a sensational start to the 2022-23 season. They are in second place in the Central Division with the third-most points (37) in the Western Conference and has really found themselves under new head coach Rick Bowne s.