It has been quite the season for Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson of Natick, MA. On Monday Carlson was named the National Hockey League first star of the week from December 2-8, 2019.
Carlson, who was the NHL first star of the month for October, had three goals and three assists for six points in three games this past week. Carlson had one goal and two assists for three points in a 5-2 Washington win over the San Jose Sharks on December 3. That was followed by two goals in a 3-1 Washington win over the Los Angeles Kings on December 4 and one assist in a 3-2 Washington win over the Anaheim Ducks on December 6.
Also in the three games, Carlson was a +5. He also had two game winning goals, one power play point, 11 shots on goal, two hits and three blocked shots. Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry, who had two shutouts, was named the NHL’s second star and Buffalo Sabres center Jack Eichel was named the NHL’s third star.
It was in the Capitals wins over the Sharks and Kings that Carlson scored the game winning goal. His game winner against the Sharks came with 3:28 left in the first period from Michal Kempny of Hodonin, Czech Republic (Czechoslovakia at the time of his birth). The goal put the Capitals up 3-1.
Then against the Kings, Carlson put the Kings up 2-0 with a game winning goal at 13:27 of the first period. T.J. Oshie of Everett, WA and Lars Eller picked up the assists.
On the season, Carlson is the Norris Trophy favorite. His 43 points leads the NHL for defensemen and is the sixth most in the NHL. He also has 11 goals, 32 assists, is a +19, eight penalty minutes, 13 power play points, four game winning goals, 92 shots on goal, 52 blocked shots, 20 hits, 17 takeaways and 31 giveaways.
The Capitals also have the most points in the NHL with 49. They have a record of 22 wins, five regulation losses and five losses in extra time.
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