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NHL Three Stars: Steven Stamkos’ 3-way trick; goalies rule for Avs, Leafs

Ryan Getzlaf ponders the new season while visiting the seventh level of hell.

No. 1 Star: Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning

Stamkos scored a hat trick against the Florida Panthers, with each goal coming a different way in the 7-2 victory. He scored a shorthanded goal in the first, scored at even strength in the second and then notched a power-play goal in the third. He also earned a primary helper on Marty St. Louis’s first-period goal. Here’s the trick, the sixth of his career:

No. 2 Star: Jean-Sebastian Giguere, Colorado Avalanche

The Avs are now 4-0-0 after the veteran backup goalie posted a 38-save performance at the previously unbeaten Boston Bruins, as Colorado won 2-0. He made 14 saves in the third period alone. Ryan O'Reilly and Matt Duchene (empty netter) had the goals.

No. 3 Star: Jonathan Bernier, Toronto Maple Leafs

The Leafs goalie made 36 stops in their 4-0 win over Nashville Predators, as Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk helped provide the offense.

Honorable mention: Sergei Bobrovsky made 26 saves as the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Buffalo Sabres, 4-1. Marian Gaborik had a goal and two assists. … Nathan Gerbe had the game-winner and Anton Khudobin made 30 saves as the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Washington Capitals, 3-2. Alex Ovechkin notched his fifth of the season. … Michael Stone’s goal in the third period broke a tie and Antoine Vermette’s empty netter iced it as the Phoenix Coyotes defeated the Detroit Red Wings, 4-2. Mike Smith made 28 saves. … Matt Cooke’s rebound goal in the third period proved to be the difference, as the Wild defeated the Jets, 2-1. Josh Harding made 14 saves in the win. … Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher had a goal and an assist, while P.K. Subban had three assists, as the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Edmonton Oilers, 4-1. Peter Budaj won with 27 saves. … Brent Burns, Joe Thornton and Logan Couture had two points apiece and Antti Niemi made 25 saves as the San Jose Sharks defeated the Vancouver Canucks, 4-1. … The Rangers were humbled again, 6-0, by the Anaheim Ducks. Jakob Silfverberg scored two goals while Teemu Selanne and Corey Perry both had two assists.

Did You Know? Marty St. Louis has 917 points, which moved him past Bobby Orr (915) into 94th place on the NHL all-time list.

Dishonorable mention: Milan Lucic was given a misconduct in the second period for going after Gabriel Landeskog. … Henrik Lundqvist gave up all six goals in the loss. ... Mike Weber was a minus-4 for the Sabres. … Stephen Weiss was a minus-4, while Daniel Alfredsson was a minus-3. … The Rangers’ top four defensemen are a combined minus-20 over their last two games. … Ryan Whitney and Erik Gudbranson were a minus-3.