Mario Lemieux Player Of Month

[Derek21]

nhlmedia.com

Penguins' Lemieux Named NHL Player of the Month

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE/NOVEMBER 1, 2002

PENGUINS' LEMIEUX NAMED NHL PLAYER OF THE MONTH FOR OCTOBER

NEW YORK (Nov. 1, 2002) -- Pittsburgh Penguins center Mario Lemieux, the six-time Art Ross Trophy winner as the National Hockey League's top scorer, recorded a League-leading 23 points in October to earn the NHL Player of the Month award. Lemieux posted six goals and 17 assists in 10 games as the Penguins went 6-2-2-0.

Lemieux earned points on 23 of the Penguins' 35 goals (66%), was on the ice for 26 Pittsburgh goals (74%) and posted points in nine consecutive games to end the month. Lemieux captured the League's Player of the Month award for the 14th time in his career.

Lemieux tallied four points (two goals, including the game-winner, and two assists) in a 5-4 victory at Toronto Oct. 14. He added three assists in a 3-3 tie at Montreal Oct. 22, tallied his second game-winner of the season in a 3-2 victory over Washington Oct. 28 and collected three points (one goal, two assists) in a 4-1 victory at Ottawa Oct. 30.

Lemieux and linemates Alexei Kovalev (8-7--15) and Aleksey Morozov (7-7--14) rank first, second and sixth, respectively, among NHL scorers and have accounted for 60% of the Penguins' goal total. The line was put together for the team's second game of the season.

Lemieux, 37, ranks eighth on the NHL's all-time goals list (660), 10th in assists (964) and seventh in points (1,624).

Other players considered for NHL Player of the Month honors:

* Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin (7-0-2, 2.06 GAA) backstopped his club to its best start in franchise history and a tie for first place in the Eastern Conference (7-1-2-0). Khabibulin led all goaltenders in victories and posted the 29th shutout of his career Oct. 30 against the New York Rangers.

* Minnesota Wild left wing Marian Gaborik (6-8--14 in 11 games) led the Wild in scoring, posted a pair of game-winning goals and became the first 20-year-old in a decade to record six points in a game (Oct. 24 at Phoenix).

* Minnesota Wild goaltender Manny Fernandez was undefeated in October (6-0-0, 1.48 goals-against average, .949 save percentage), backstopping the Wild to first place in the NHL's overall standings (8-1-2-0). Fernandez led all goaltenders in goals-against average and save percentage.

* Philadelphia Flyers left wing John LeClair notched seven goals in 10 games, helping the Flyers (7-1-2-0) to first place in the Atlantic Division and a share of top spot in the Eastern Conference.

* St. Louis Blues defenseman Al MacInnis (3-6--9, +7 in eight games), wearing the "C" in the absence of blueline partner Chris Pronger, helped the Blues to a 6-1-1-0 record and first place in the Central Division.

* Boston Bruins center Joe Thornton (3-8--11 in 10 games) helped the Bruins post an eight-game unbeaten streak (6-0-2-0) from to Oct. 14-30, lifting the club to first place in the Northeast Division.

* Carolina Hurricanes right wing Jeff O'Neill (4-9--13 in 11 games) posted a 10-game point streak Oct. 11-30, the longest of the month by any player.

* Detroit Red Wings center Sergei Fedorov (8-4--12 in 10 games) grabbed a share of the NHL goal-scoring lead, helping the Red Wings (6-3-1-0) cope with the absence of captain Steve Yzerman.

* Tampa Bay Lightning center Martin St. Louis (6-9 --15 in 10 games) led his club in scoring and tied for second in the League overall.

* Wings Alexei Kovalev (8-7--15) and Aleksey Morozov (7-7--14) flanked Mario Lemieux on the Penguins' top line, finishing the month second and sixth, respectively, on the NHL scoring list.

[Weekes Head]

Damn Mario, taking away from the other players! He's had an insane start, but I'm still a little iffy on him...

There was a lot of talent considered for this month's honor - I think the race was tighter than it really looks.