Alex Ovechkin makes All-Star game despite scoring slump

The Washington Capitals captain and Detroit Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom were among 36 players chosen to round out the roster for the game in Raleigh, North Carolina, the NHL said on its website (www.nhl.com).

Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby, the league's leading scorer, and five other players were chosen for the game last week based on fan voting.

Ovechkin made the squad despite having the lowest-scoring season of his five-year NHL career. The 25-year-old Russian, who led the league in scoring in 2007-08, has just 15 goals and 29 assists - well below Crosby's NHL-leading 66 points.

Lidstrom, 40, will be the game's old-timer, making his 11th All-Star game appearance.

Under a new format being used for the first time, the 42 selected players will decide the captains and alternate captains of the two teams.

The appointed team leaders then will choose their squads in a televised draft.

Crosby was joined in the earlier selections by team mates Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Marc-Andre Fleury as well as Jonathan Toews and Duncan Keith of the Stanley Cup-winning Chicago Blackhawks.

Tampa Bay's Steven Stamkos, who is second to Crosby in goals and points, Vancouver twins Henrik and Daniel Sedin, and Carolina's Eric Staal were chosen as forwards.

The complete All-Star roster:

Forwards - Corey Perry, Anaheim; Jarome Iginla, Calgary; Eric Staal, Carolina; Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp and Jonathan Toews, Chicago; Matt Duchene, Colorado; Rick Nash, Columbus; Loui Eriksson and Brad Richards, Dallas; Ales Hemsky, Edmonton; Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles; Patrik Elias, New Jersey; Claude Giroux, Philadelphia; Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh; David Backes, St. Louis; Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay; Phil Kessel, Toronto; Ryan Kesler, Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin, Vancouver; and Alex Ovechkin, Washington.

Defensemen - Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom, Atlanta; Zdeno Chara, Boston; Duncan Keith, Chicago; Niklas Lidstrom, Detroit; Brent Burns, Minnesota; Shea Weber, Nashville; Marc Staal, New York Rangers; Erik Karlsson, Ottawa; Kris Letang, Pittsburgh; Dan Boyle, San Jose; Mike Green, Washington.

Goaltenders - Jonas Hiller, Anaheim; Tim Thomas, Boston; Cam Ward, Carolina; Carey Price, Montreal; Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers; Marc-Andre Fleury, Pittsburgh.

(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Salvo, North Carolina. Editing by Steve Ginsburg)