Tue Apr 1 16:07:21 2008

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Ovechkin, Fleury and Franzen named top players for March

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New York, NY (Sports Network) - Washington winger Alex Ovechkin, Pittsburgh goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and Detroit forward Johan Franzen were selected as the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the month of March.

Ovechkin was named the NHL's First Star for March after leading all NHL scorers with 26 points (14 goals, 12 assists) during the month. He also posted a plus-17 rating during the span and helped the Capitals play to a 10-4-0 record in the middle of the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Also, Ovechkin scored two goals in a game at Atlanta on March 21 to reach 60 markers for the season and become the first NHL player to achieve that feat in over a decade. Pittsburgh's Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr were the last players to reach 60, as they notched 69 and 62 goals, respectively, during the 1995-96 campaign.

The Russian sniper leads the NHL this season with 62 goals and 109 points.

Fleury, meanwhile, was named the league's Second Star for posting a 9-1-1 record, 1.44 goals against average and .951 save percentage in March. He also recorded two shutouts and allowed two goals or less in 10 his 11 games.

The Third Star was Franzen, who had 18 points (14g, 4a) in 13 games and registered six-game winning goals. Franzen, who is in his third NHL season, has set career-highs in goals (26) and points (36) this year.