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Linesman Andy McElman escorts Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin to the penalty box after a fight in the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015, in Washington.The Associated Press

Washington Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin is the NHL's first star of January after scoring a league-high 12 goals in 13 games over the month.

Ovechkin also led all players with six power-play goals and 59 shots on goal to power the Capitals to a 7-3-3 January and the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Moscow native leads the NHL with 31 goals, 14 power-play goals, six game-winning goals (tied) and 248 shots in 50 games this season.

He is the fifth player in NHL history to record at least 30 goals in each of his first 10 seasons, joining Mike Gartner, Wayne Gretzky, Mike Bossy and Jari Kurri.

New York Islanders centre John Tavares is January's second star after scoring eight goals and adding eight assists in 12 games to lead the Islanders to the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.

Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask went 7-1-3 with a 1.61 goals-against average, .949 save percentage and one shutout over the month to claim the third star award.

In weekly awards, Montreal goaltender Carey Price is the NHL's first star after a nearly perfect week in the Canadiens' net.

Price posted a 3-0-0 record with a 0.66 goals-against average, .980 save percentage and two shutouts to backstop the Canadiens to three win in four games.

He started the week with 40 saves in a 3-2 win over the Dallas Stars on Tuesday. He followed that performance with a pair of 1-0 shutouts against the New York Rangers and Washington.

Tampa Bay Lightning centre Cedric Paquette is the weekly second star after scoring five goals in three games.

Minnesota Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk takes third-star honours. He went 3-0-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average, .967 save percentage and one shutout last week.

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