Kaberle NHL’s top star of week

Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Tomas Kaberle(notes) was recognized by the NHL for his torrid offensive pace last week.

Kaberle was named first star by the league on Monday after registering two goals and 10 assists in four road games last week.

The veteran defenceman’s play was a huge reason why the Maple Leafs managed points in all four games, albeit with three overtime losses. Kaberle was in all but three of Toronto’s goals during the week.

The Czech Republic native now ranks second in the NHL with 15 assists, and his 17 points put him momentarily ahead of such offensive stars as Sidney Crosby(notes), Dany Heatley(notes) and Zach Parise(notes).

Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne(notes) bounced back from a slow start to the season last week and was named second star.

Rinne went 3-0 with a shutout and a .968 save percentage as the Predators beat Minnesota, Chicago and Dallas.

The Finnish netminder recorded his eighth career shutout, blanking the Blackhawks with 22 saves.

San Jose Sharks goalie Evgeni Nabokov(notes) was nearly as good, earning him third star honours.

Nabokov also went 3-0, allowing just one goal in each San Jose win. Nabokov stopped 77 shots in all.

The NHL also announced its top players for October, with Colorado Avalanche netminder Craig Anderson(notes) leading the way.

Anderson started all 14 games for Colorado to lead last year’s worst team in the West to a surprising 10-2-2 start. Anderson, who signed as a free agent in the summer after three seasons with Florida, had two shutouts in October and an NHL best .939 save percentage.

Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals was second star after racking up 14 goals and 23 points during the month, both totals are tops in the league.

Ilya Bryzgalov(notes) of Phoenix rounded out the top three. The Coyotes goalie posted three shutouts in 11 starts, going 8-3 with a 1.78 goals-against average and .930 save percentage.