Wild’s Koivu gets NHL 3rd star

Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu has been named the NHL’s third star of the week for his play this past week.

Koivu tied for first in the NHL with 3-5—8 in three games to lift the Wild (17-8-6, 40 points) to a pair of wins. He started the week with 1-3—4 – his third career three-point performance and first since Jan. 2, 2011 vs. PHX (0-4—4) – in a 6-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks Dec. 15. Koivu followed that with 2-1—3 in a 5-2 triumph over the New York Rangers Dec. 17 before collecting one assist in a 3-2 loss to the Nashville Predators Dec. 19, ending the team’s season-high point streak at nine games (6-0-3). The 32-year-old Turku, Finland, native leads the Wild with 8-21—29 in 31 contests this season, his seventh as the club’s captain.