BOX SCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

The Washington Capitals turned a tight, tense game with their arch-rival Philadelphia Flyers into a resounding victory, scoring three times in the final two periods to secure a 5-3 victory before a raucous, sellout crowd at the Verizon Center.

Brooks Laich scored twice, breaking a considerable drought, and captain Alex Ovechkin netted a penalty shot, his first successful such play, after starting his career 0-for-5.

It was Ovechkin's 30th goal of the season, the Caps' fifth and last goal of the game, and triggered the promotion for giveaway wings from a local establishment.

"We just want to give fans free chicken wings and give them free food, you know?" Ovechkin said wryly in the locker room after the game.

Free food aside, it was a spirited contest.  And though no fights erupted like the last couple of matches, there was plenty of good checking from both sides.

The win was the Capitals third in a row and sixth in seven games.  The offense has been on a tear during that stretch, scoring four or more goals in seven straight contests.  For the season, the Caps average 3.71 goals per game, far outpacing second-place Chicago. 

Tonight's output was no less stellar.

"Eventually it's going to stop," coach Bruce Boudreau said of the recent string of high scoring. "We're not going to score five goals a game. But it's nice while it's going on."

The one player that had not been so involved in the offense of late was Laich.

The coach pulled Laich aside after their morning skate-around, and the two had a serious film session, going over each of the gritty winger's shifts the past few games.

Boudreau stressed to Laich that he needed to play with more "sandpaper", insinuating himself into the play more.

"It kinda looked uninspired to me, the way I was playing," Laich said from his locker stall.  "[Boudreau] said, 'get back to being determined, skating, using your assets,going to the net and good things will happen.'"

Both of Laich's goals came from point-blank range tonight, his first on a rebound of a Tomas Fleischmann shot in the crease, and the second a breakaway backhander on a lazy breakout pass during a Flyers' power play.

“He is a very intense young man,” says Boudreau of Laich. “Sometimes he likes to do too much. We just looked over his video – his shifts, his goals – we saw if there was anything we could find that he was doing different. We had a good talk and I was so happy when he scored. You are never going to find a guy that cares more than Brooks Laich.”

Mike Knuble had the Caps' first goal of the evening, tying the score midway through the first period, against his former teammates.  Alexander Semin added his 20th goal of the season -- a power play marker -- and an assist.

Washington killed three of the five power plays Philadelphia was awarded.

The Caps had just 22 shots on goals against Ray Emery, making his first start since Dec. 5, when the Caps torched him for five goals on just 17 shots in an 8-2 win.

The win signals the end of the regular season series with Philly, with the Caps owning their former Patrick division rivals, 3-0-1 for the season.  Washington us now 30-12-6, and with 66 points have retaken the lead in the Eastern Conference.

Washington hosts the Detroit Red Wings Tuesday night at 7:05 pm.

____________________________________________________________

THREE STARS

1. B. Laich - WAS (Goals: 2, Assists: 1)

2. A. Semin - WAS (Goals: 1, Assists: 1)

3. A. Ovechkin - WAS (Goals: 1, Assists: 1)

BOXSCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

Washington, DC -- The Washington Capitals hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs in front of a Red Rockin' Caps crowd.  The weather may have felt like winter, however, it was fall in DC tonight -- The Maple Leafs fell.  Caps dominated entire game and won 6-1.

It took less than a minute for Alex Ovechkin to score a goal and start racking up the points.  The NHL MVP had a season high five point game.  Ovechkin also had a career-high four assists.

After Ovi scored the first goal of the game, Coach Bruce Boudreau thought, "Alex is on tonight."

Mike Knuble and Ovechkin were the fabulous duo.  Back-to-back Knuble goals assisted by Ovi.  Knuble seems to be back on track with five goals in this last five games and his broken finger is healing nicely.

John Carlson was recalled from Hershey this afternoon and arrived at Verizon Center at 6:30 just in time for warmups.  Carlson received a warm reception from the surprised Caps fans when he was announced in the starting lineup.  Fans thanked him for his winning OT goal in the gold medal game at the World Junior Championships when Team USA beat Canada.

"It's pretty cool when you get cheered on like that," Carlson said. "It's cool to recognized like that. But you have to make sure to stay focused on the game, so they're still cheering for you after the game, too."

Caps found yet another enforcer--Shaone Morrisonn.  With about six minutes left in the game, it appeared that Colton Orr took a cheap shot at Mike Green which left him lying flat on his back and Shaone Morrisonn took up the fight with Orr.  Morrisonn ended up with 2 min for instigating, 5 min for fighting and 10 min for misconduct.  Orr was only slapped with a 2 min interference call along with 5 min for fighting.  Coach Boudreau said during post-game interview that after looking back at video, Orr's hit on Green "didn't look like a vicious check."

"We don't exactly have the toughest team in the world," said Boudreau, but 'this group cares about each other and when one hits one, they hit them all."

Caps have had a season-high 13 penalties twice this year - in each of the last two games. 

Per Caps Insider, Jason Chimera will receive an automatic one game suspension because he was whistled for an instigator in the final five minutes of the game. Coach Bruce Boudreau also receives an automatic $10,000 fine because of Chimera's infraction.

Jose Theodore looked sharp in goal and will likely be in goal against Flyers. Coach Boudreau said, "I hope this gets him some confidence. He'll probably start on Sunday afternoon and go again. He's a competitor, a battler. He's done it his whole life being a small goaltender with the awards he won. So it's no surprise to me that he's gone in there and is saying, 'The heck with you guys, 'I'm going to be great.'"

Theodore gave Carlson the Hard Hat. "None of the Canadians were happy with me, it was pretty funny" said a smiling Number 74.

_______________________________________________________

SCORESHEET

1ST PERIOD
00:49 Alex Ovechkin (29), Snap Shot. Assist: Backstrom
17:51 Eric Fehr (12), Slap Shot. Assist: Ovechkin, Chimera

2ND PERIOD
04:03 Mike Knuble (11), Backhand Shot.  Assist: Ovechkin, Backstrom
06:48 Power Play - Mike Knuble (12), Wrist Shot. Assist: Ovechkin, Semin
18:37 Power Play - Tomas Kaberle (5), Slap Shot.  Assist: Kessel, Stempniak

3RD PERIOD
06:47 Power Play - Tomas Fleischmann (16), Tip-In.  Assist: Ovechkin, Green
11:06 Tom Poti (2), Wrist Shot.  Assist: Semin, Green

________________________________________________________

THREE STARS

1. A. Ovechkin - WAS (Goals: 1, Assists: 4)

2. M. Knuble - WAS (Goals: 2, Assists: 0)

3. J. Theodore - WAS (Saves: 28, Save Pct: .966)

For the second night in a row, Washington Capitals rookie goalie Michael Neuvirth gave up four goals in 15 shots, all in the first period.  And for the second night in a row, coach Bruce Boudreau called on veteran Jose Theodore was called on to relieve the youngster at the start of the second period.

Only on this night against the Florida Panthers, Theodore was excellent in net, holding the Panthers at four goals, allowing his talented teammates to chip away at opposite number Tomas Vokoun.

Theo stopped all 15 shots he faced in regulation, and was outstanding in overtime. On three successive odd-man rushes, including a one-on-one breakaway, Theodore came up big, steering away everything sent in his direction.

Eventually the Caps tied the game, sent it to overtime, and won on a seven-shot shootout, when Vokoun's Czech National teammate Tomas Fleischmann beat him to cap a tremendous comeback and steal the extra point from a stunned Panther squad.

Jason Chimera came up with a "Gordie Howe Hat Trick", with a goal, assist and fight, as he duked it out with Gregory Campbell in the second period.

Alex Ovechkin banged home the Caps third goal, 27 seconds into the third period, as the Florida D could not get the handle on a bouncing puck.  It's his 29th goal of the season, and break a little scoring drought for the two-time Hart Trophy winner.

Ovie's linemate, Nicklas Backstrom, tied the game midway through the third.  Defenseman Mike Green, who had a rough game against Tampa Bay Tuesday night, skated in from the point and directed the puck toward the net, where Backstrom got enough of his stick on the puck to flick it past a down Vokoun.

The bigger concern for Boudreau, however, has to be the poor play of his team in the first periods of the last two games.  The Caps have surrendered eight goals in the last two first periods, and only exceptional goaltending and elite goal-scoring skills rescued the game tonight.

For most of the season, the Caps have been able to dominate in the first period, outscoring the competition easily.  But against their Southeast Division foes the last two nights they just haven't been able to get out of the box.

Was it the result of starting a talented rookie who might have been suffering a confidence problem?  Could be.  Neuvirth looked outstanding in the 8-1 win over Atlanta, but confidence is a funny, fleeting thing.

Is this just a bump in the road?  The last two games of a three-game roadie might be enough to explain the sluggish starts.  The Caps play the next nine of their 11 at the Verizon Center, so that should be enough to cure that little problem.

Is it just something that happens in an 82-game schedule?  Most likely.

But if it isn't, Boudreau will get to the bottom of it.  This team is much too talented to struggle for long stretches, especially against their less-talented Southeast Division rivals.

The Washington Capitals had won 12 games in a row against Southeast Division foe Tampa Bay.  But Tuesday night the Caps could not match the Lightning's energy, and that lofty streak, along with a three-game winning streak, fell in a 7-4 loss.

Not only was the game filled with goals, but the third period was filled with heavy checks, fisticuffs, and The Professor stepping in for The Russian Machine in a fight.

The Caps got down early as they were dominated in the first period by Tampa Bay, and the frame ended with the Caps on the wrong end of a 4-1 count.  Michael Neuvirth surrendered four goals on 15 shots, though he could hardly be fully faulted for the performance.

Two of the goals were power play markers by Steven Stamkos, and the defense was fairly invisible for much of the frame.

Coach Bruce Boudreau mercifully switched goalies at the intermission, going to veteran Jose Theodore, and Theo was solid for the most part in the second, giving Washington the opportunity to claw back into the game.

Mike Green scored twice on the power play, and Eric Fehr lit the lamp with a sharp snap shot to draw things even.

But Martin St. Louis answered with less than three minutes remaining in the period to break the tie, in what would be the eventual game-winner.

The third period saw Tampa register two more goal to put things out of reach, then all hell broke loose.

Alex Ovechkin slammed Steve Downie with a clean shoulder, Downie took exception, and the two mixed it up a bit, each receiving two minute roughing penalties.

On their way out of the box, Downie slashed Ovechkin and the two exchanged words, eventually agreeing to dance.  The two discarded their gloves and helmets and brought up their dukes.  But flying across the ice was The Professor, Matt Bradley.

Bradley swooped in and saved Ovechkin from a fight, and he was hit hard by the officials.  He got an instigator, fighting, misconduct and leaving the bench.  He can probably also expect a call from discipline executive Collin Campbell in the next day or so.

Two minutes later, David Steckel and Zenon Konopka jawed at each other at the dot awaiting the faceoff.  Once the puck fell, the two went at it.  Steckel got a quick shot in to Konopka's beak, but was quickly overmatched. 

Konopka happens to lead the league in penalty minutes and fighting majors this season, and Steckel had exactly zero fights...until tonight.

But Stecks stood up for his team when they needed him, which turned into the theme of the evening for the Capitals, since the result on the scoreboard went so hard against them.

The Caps have little time to recover from getting bruised and bloodied, however, as they continue their jaunt through the sunshine state against Florida Wednesday night.

Nicklas Backstrom is going a long way to prove that he is more than just Alex Ovechkin's caddy.  He had a two-goal night -- his fifth of the season -- to lead the Washington Captials to a 5-2 win over the Ottawa Senators, before a sold out Verizon Center.

Backstrom added an assist as well on Mike Knuble's first period goal and was simply dominant.  In addition to the scoring, he was 53% in the dot on faceoffs and part of a penalty kill that gave up just two shots in six minutes shorthanded.

Newly minted captain Alex Ovechkin had a goal (his 28th) and assisted on both of Backstrom's tallies, breaking a two-game scoreless streak.

The Caps got out to a quick 2-0 lead, courtesy of some good old-fashioned hard work.  The fourth line had several good shifts in the first period, but none better that the one that resulted in Boyd Gordon's first goal of the season -- his first in over a year.

David Steckel, Matt Bradley and Gordon cycled the puck in the corner against the Senators' defense, and Steckel twice went into the corner to dig the puck out.  Gordon got a wrister off that goalie Pascal Leclaire knocked aside but could not control. 

Bradley took a whack at it, drawing a backchecking forward, and the rebound snuck out to Gordon in the slot, who dumped in into a poorly defended net as he was knocked face-first to the ice.

Gordon has missed significant time this season dealing with back spasms, and his head coach was happy to see his determination and hard work pay off with a goal.

"You have no idea how big a relief it is, if you haven't played the game, to score a goal when you haven't scored," coach Bruce Boudreau said of Gordon. "He works so hard and gets so little credit sometimes, so it was nice to see him score a goal and feel good about himself."

"The so-called fourth line, when they got on they outworked the opposition and they were successful," Boudreau remarked after the game.

But Chris Phillips sneaked a bouncing puck past Jose Theodore with two and a half minutes left in the second period, and everyone wearing red in the building started to hold their breath.

Backstrom then picked the team up.  On the opening faceoff in the third period, the 22-year old took a feed from Ovechkin at the left wing circle and beat an out-of-position Leclaire near-side from a sharp angle, as Backstrom shot practically from the goal line.

Ten minutes later, the Swedish Olympian took a puck at center ice, skated through the defense, behind the net and wrapped the puck around the post, fooling a slow-reacting Leclaire, who did not have the best night facing 38 shots.

"[Backstrom] showed a lot of leadership because I thought we were floundering a little bit in the second period when it was 2-1," Boudreau said. "Then he comes out in the third period and gets two goals. He was just determined. That's what's making him one of the best."

Backstrom now has 17 goals this season, and nine in his last 11 games.

Goalie Jose Theodore, who was beaten for six goals his last start against Carolina Dec. 28, played well, turning aside 26 of 28 shots faced.  He played with a confidence that had been missing his last couple of starts.

"I thought Jose played good.  If he'd had any luck today he should have had a shutout," Boudreau said of his netminder.  "You can tell he's solid when he's controlling his rebounds and he really controlled his rebounds tonight."

"I'm really happy for him and I hope that gets his confidence going."

Theodore stressed the extra shooting he's taken during practice and work with goalie coach Arturs Irbe is making a difference in his preparation and concentration.

Win the win, the Caps raise their record to 14-3-3 at home, and Boudreau was quick to point out to the press that when they return from their three-game road trip next week, they will have played the fewest home games of anyone in the league, something that he hopes will help the team down the stretch to capture the Eastern Conference title.

Notes:  Quentin Laing and Tyler Sloan were healthy scratches.

Brian Pothier played for the first time in 11 games.  Washington is just 7-6-1 in games Pothier has not played this season.

The Washington Capitals entered Tuesday night's game with the Montreal Canadiens on a three game regulation losing streak and in need of a spark. 

They got that and more, as Alexander Semin scored twice, Tomas Fleischmann registered a goal and two helpers, and Michal Neuvirth pushed aside 24 of 26 shots, as the Caps completed a 4-2 victory over the Habs before a sellout crowd at Verizon Center.

The biggest news of the day, however, was the biggest spark that could have been provided.  Earlier in the day, and announced just at game time, two-time Hart Trophy winner Alex Ovechkin was named as the 14th captain in Capitals' history, ending a three-game captainless stretch, the result of the trade that sent Chris Clark to Columbus.

Ovechkin was held without a point in his first game as captain, making it two games in a row the prolific scorer has been held off the scoresheet.  But it was of no matter, as his countryman, Semin, tallied twice, including the icing on the cake with just over two minutes remaining.

To illustrate the point of leadership, coach Bruce Boudreau had his captain take the ice as time dwindled with the Caps fighting off the extra skater with less than a minute left.

Fleischmann played a complete game in his first start at center in the NHL, scoring the first goal of the game -- unassisted -- on the power play.  He also helped out on both of Semin's goals as well.  The flourishing touch?  He even won the majority of his faceoffs, something he needed extra practice for with faceoff specialists David Steckel and Biyd Gordon in yesterday's practice.

Perhaps the only blemish on the victory was two third period penalties by veteran alternate captain Mike Knuble.  He was whistled twice in the final frame, and the first ended with Benoit Pouliot's fifth goal of the season, which brought Montreal within one.

But the Caps killed the second infraction, then Semin notched the insurance goal at 17:58.

Ovechkin becomes just the sixth Russian born player to captain an NHL team.  He is the second youngest captain in Capitals history, and the third youngest captain in the league.

Boudreau heaped praise upon his newly minted leader. 

"I talked to him a few days ago about it," Boudreau said. "He said, 'I would accept the responsibility, but only if my teammates want me to. If they're happy with me as a captain, I'd be glad to be captain.' So he was already thinking about the team rather than thinking about himself, which is what captains do."

Ovechkin was circumspect in the locker room following the game.  "We have a lot of guys who can speak and talk. But if I have to say something, I say something."

Notes:  After the game, the Washington Post reported that David Steckel has signed a contract extension.

In the World Junior Championships in Saskatoon, Team USA defeated Team Canada in the Gold Medal game, winning 6-5 in overtime.  Caps' prospect John Carlson had two goals in the game, including the game winner on a 2-on-1 breakaway in overtime.

The Capitals took 43 shots -- a season high -- and marked the eighth time this season they've recorded 40 or more. They are 7-0-1 when taking 40 or more shots.

Photos From Habs v. Caps; Ovi wears C (C) C. Nichols 2010.

Montreal Canadiens (21-20-3-45, fourth in Northeast)

v.

Washington Capitals (24-11-6-54, first in Southeast)

______________________________________________________

The Washington Capitals come home after a brutal road trip, losing to Los Angeles and San Jose by a combined 7-3, on the heels of getting routed in their last home game, 6-3, by Carolina. 

Washington has not won since the trade that sent then-captain Chris Clark and defenseman Milan Jurcina to Columbus for winger Jason Chimera.

The Caps have not suffered four consecutive regulation losees since Nov. 2007, which triggered the move to bring in coach Bruce Boudreau.

Montreal lost Sunday, 1-0 to Buffalo, but has won their previous two games, over Florida and Tampa Bay.

Semyon Varlamov, who was sent to AHL Hershey to get back into playing shape, instead reinjured himself Sunday in a 4-1 win for Hershey and will miss perhaps another two weeks.

Nicklas Backstrom, who left the L.A. game with a migraine, practiced yesterday and should be available for the game with Montreal.  Alexnader Semin missed practice with an undisclosed injury, but pronounced himself fine for the game.

The teams have split two games this season.  Montreal won 3-2 in D.C. Nov. 19 and the Caps returned the favor, winning in Montreal 4-3 in a shootout on Nov. 27.