Backstrom was named the NHL's weekly first star with three goals and 10 points as the Capitals won all four of their games. He moved into the top 10 in league scoring with 42 points.
Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand also vaulted into the top production tier, scoring four goals and eight points. He matched a career-high with five points in his 500th career game Saturday.
Finally, Brock McGinn of the Carolina Hurricanes was recognized as the NHL's third star. He had four goals and three assists, helping the Hurricanes to three wins in as many outings. He has 12 points total on the season.
It's believed he suffered a left knee injury while being tangled up with Thomas Vanek.
Letang exited the ice in distress, unable to bear weight on his leg. He took one short shift a little later on, but did not return after that.
Staying healthy has been a challenge for Letang throughout his career. He's made 70-plus starts once in the last five 82-game campaigns, and has wound up on injured reserve twice already this season.
We should have a clearer idea of whether the Tampa Bay Lightning will live up to expectation this season in, oh, 10 days.
The Lightning, seated seventh in the wild-card race in the Eastern Conference with 44 points from as many starts, are in California to begin a critical six-game road trip Monday afternoon against the Los Angeles Kings.
They'll meet the Anaheim Ducks on a back-to-back Tuesday before completing the California gauntlet Thursday versus the San Jose Sharks. From there, the Lightning travel to Arizona and Chicago before making a pit stop in Sunrise on the way home, closing out the road trip versus the Panthers, who are up four points on their in-state rivals.
The Lightning failed to take advantage of five home dates in the first six games of the new year, winning once as they officially crossed the halfway point on the season.
They've felt the absence of befallen sniper Steven Stamkos, collecting 10 wins from 27 games, but keeping pucks out of their own net has been the greatest concern to this point. Tampa Bay's 130 goals allowed - nearly three a game - is sixth-worst in the NHL.
theScore's new series, "The Noise," is published every Monday. It kicks off each week with a quick look at three teams or players making headlines, good or bad.
Bruce Boudreau's Central Division leaders prevailed in the third with go-ahead markers in consecutive nights this weekend. They beat Dallas after coughing up a lead, and then extended their remarkable winning streak over the second-place Blackhawks to eight games Sunday. More important than winning in ways that precede Boudreau's arrival, the Wild now sit two points up on Chicago with four games in their pocket.
Minnesota has 17 wins, one shootout loss, and one regulation loss in its last 19 games. Wild. Its NHL-best plus-46 scoring margin is greater than the combined goal differential of every Western Conference team that's outscoring the competition this season.
Still, Minnesota isn't running away with the Central, let alone the President's Trophy and top record in the NHL. Despite their run, the Wild have the league's third-best points percentage. The absence of complacency should bode well for a team that hasn't advanced past the second round in 14 years.
Flyers shook?
For a while, Philadelphia ran with the lead pack in the NHL's top division. The Flyers were one of five Metropolitan teams sprinting ahead in the Eastern Conference, their pace established with 10 consecutive wins into the middle of December.
Philadelphia was two points from both first and fifth at the end of its streak. So when the Flyers inevitably cooled, they immediately lost ground while the other four teams challenging for three postseason seeds - the Blue Jackets, Capitals, Penguins, and Rangers - kept a relentless pace.
Now, with just a single regulation win in 14 games, and having been outscored 51-27 since their hot streak, the torpedoing Flyers are fortunate to have taken nine of a possible 28 points.
Philadelphia still clings to a wild-card spot, largely due to the weakness of the Atlantic Division, but when it return from the mandated bye week, the task will almost certainly be regaining the postseason spot it's lost.
Useful Juuse
One trend in this compressed NHL season has been the scramble for capable support in net. Too many teams have dropped points because backups haven't given them a chance while its starter catches their breath.
There has been no such dilemma for the Predators.
Juuse Saros' arrival, and his sterling contributions behind Pekka Rinne, have been the difference in Nashville becoming the eighth-best puck-stopping team after finishing in the bottom tier a season ago.
With 35 saves in a 2-1 win over the Bruins last week, Saros now sports a 1.25 goals-against average and .957 save percentage across eight starts. He's let in one goal for every 23.4 shots faced in his first taste of NHL action.
Fresh, having not been used in consecutive nights since Saros' recall, Rinne's offered one of his better statistical seasons.
There's a reason Taylor Hall immediately skated over to Travis Zajac before embracing the rest of his teammates Sunday night.
Zajac's impressive backcheck nullified a chance by Vancouver Canucks forward Sven Baertschi, and Zajac then fed Hall, who went end-to-end for the game-winner in overtime.
It was Hall's 11th goal of the season, but it wouldn't have been possible without Zajac's play in the Devils' defensive zone.
Blink and you'll miss Patrick Kane's goal scoring.
The Chicago Blackhawks star pounced on the loose puck in the faceoff circle off an offensive-zone draw and roofed a wrist shot over Devan Dubnyk for his second goal of Sunday's game against the Minnesota Wild.
Kane opened the scoring on a knuckler less than five minutes into the game. The goals were his 13th and 14th of the season.
