Welcome to the NHL Star Power Index, a weekly look at the most talked-about players in the league. Being on this list means a player is generating significant attention in the hockey world.
The players are listed without any ranking based on their buzz. We will update the Star Power Index every week during the regular season.
Macklin Celebrini, a forward for the San Jose Sharks, has had a solid rookie season, highlighted this week by his first NHL hat trick. He achieved this in an 8-7 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild.
In this high-scoring game, Celebrini scored three goals and provided two assists. He became the youngest player in Sharks history to score a hat trick at 18 years old, and only the third 18-year-old in the NHL in the last eight seasons, joining Leo Carlsson of the Anaheim Ducks and Cole Sillinger of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
This was Celebrini`s fourth game with multiple goals in his debut season.
Celebrini`s first goal came at 7:29 of the first period, thanks to excellent puck movement. Rookie teammate Will Smith passed to defenseman Jack Thompson at the blue line, who then got the puck to Celebrini in the slot. Celebrini quickly controlled the puck and shot it past Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
In the third period, Smith again played a key role, racing for a loose puck and finding Celebrini cutting to the net after circling behind it. Celebrini then scored his third goal with a high shot that Fleury couldn`t reach.
Despite a slow start to his rookie year, Celebrini has significantly improved his performance in the last two months, scoring six goals and 14 assists since the beginning of March.
He is now just two points behind Lane Hutson of the Montreal Canadiens for the rookie points lead. Even with missed time earlier in the season, Celebrini remains one of the most impressive rookies this year.
Despite a challenging season for the Boston Bruins, star winger David Pastrnak has been an offensive force.
In Tuesday`s 7-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils, Pastrnak scored a goal and had two assists, reaching the 100-point mark for the third season in a row. He is the first Czech-born player in NHL history to achieve this milestone.
Earlier in the week, Pastrnak also made history by scoring his first career natural hat trick in a 5-1 win against the Carolina Hurricanes. He was involved in all five of his team`s goals, also adding two assists. This hat trick also secured his fourth consecutive 40-goal season, and his fifth overall, tying Rick Middleton for the second-most in Bruins history.
Pastrnak particularly dominated the final half of the game against the Hurricanes on Saturday.
Midway through the second period, Pastrnak scored from a very difficult angle. Elias Lindholm flipped the puck in front of the net to Pastrnak, who controlled it with his skate, then quickly fired a shot from the side past Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen.
Later, Pastrnak displayed his excellent puck-handling skills. Morgan Geekie entered the Hurricanes zone and found Pastrnak open in the face-off circle. Pastrnak skated in on Andersen and deked his way to another goal.
Pastrnak has had an incredible week, with five goals and eight assists in his last four games. Over a longer stretch, he has scored seven goals in his last six games and shows no signs of slowing down, even though the Bruins will miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season.
Since joining the NHL in 2022, Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson has consistently improved each season. As this regular season nears its end, Sanderson is having his best offensive season yet.
Sanderson has 54 points, and his 43 assists are second on the team, only behind forward Tim Stutzle (51).
In his last five games, Sanderson has three goals and two assists, scoring points in four of them. He had a goal and an assist in a 3-0 win against the Florida Panthers last Saturday.
Against Florida, Sanderson positioned himself perfectly at 11:21 of the first period. After Shane Pinto got the puck behind the Panthers` net, he passed to Sanderson in the face-off circle for a powerful one-timer goal.
Sanderson also earned an assist on a power-play goal by Drake Batherson just three minutes later, increasing Ottawa`s lead to 2-0.
Sanderson has been crucial to Ottawa`s success this season, as the team is on track to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016-17. He provides defensive stability and offensive skills, boosting the Senators.
Adin Hill, the Vegas Golden Knights` goalie, has been a reliable presence in net since joining the team during their Stanley Cup win in 2022-23. Now a starting goalie, Hill continues to perform well for a team aiming for another championship.
This season, Hill has a 31-13-5 record with a 2.46 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. In his recent two starts, he has won both games, with a 1.50 goals-against average and a .935 save percentage.
Most recently, Hill saved 24 out of 25 shots in a 2-1 win against the Seattle Kraken on Thursday, including 11 saves in the third period to prevent the Kraken from tying the score.
Hill has allowed one or fewer goals in four of his last nine games and has been strong recently.
The Golden Knights are close to securing the top playoff spot in the Pacific Division with only a few games left in the regular season. In the upcoming Stanley Cup Playoffs, Hill will be crucial in stopping top Western Conference teams as the Golden Knights try for another Stanley Cup.
