With every pre-season game that passes, the Washington Capitals have turned up the intensity a little bit each time.  Last night against the Buffalo Sabres, before a not-quite packed house at Verizon Center, they did so again in beating the Sabres 4-3 in a six-round shootout.

Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Green and Matt Hendricks all scored in regular time and Tomas Vokoun made 21 saves on 24 shots to lead the Caps to their second pre-season win.  After a scoreless overtime, the game went to a shootout, where the normal three rounds just weren't enough.  Backstrom beat Ryan Miller on the Caps sixth try and Vokoun stopped Luke Adam to finally secure the victory.

The Caps played loosely in their own end in the first two periods, with all three sets of defensemen breaking down, leading to scoring chances.  But in the third period the Caps played with more intensity and attention to detail, limiting the Sabres to just three shots in the final frame.

"Even though we were faced with some adversity there in the first couple periods, we didn't give up," said Mike Green from the victorious locker room.  "We showed our character."

Green thinks the gradual transition in intensity is an inherent thing.  "I think it's natural.  I think now we're starting to wind down to our roster and guys are getting ready to actually play and get focused on the season. I feel like training camp is one thing, once the season starts you change your mind-frame."

Matt Hendricks agrees with his teammate on the natural progression.  "I think what helps is that we're getting a little more comfortable with what we're doing with each other.  I think when you're hesitating you're thinking too much out there.  The game doesn't seem to be as fast as you kind of get that underneath of you.  You start picking up the speed, things start to get more physical and I think that was evident tonight."

Coach Bruce Boudreau chalked much of the uneven play of the first two frames to miscommunication as a result of having most of his regulars on the ice together for the first time this pre-season.  But talking things out in the second intermission seemed to lead to the better focus, especially on defense.

"I thought the energy and the forechecking in the first two periods was pretty good," Boudreau said.  "We got the results in the third period, but I think a lot of it was we worked hard in the first two periods.  But it was consistant for 60 minutes, which we hadn't done [thus far]. In the previous five games, in Chicago we were good for forty minutes, in Columbus we were good for the last 20 minutes, and you can go on and on.  We were good for portions of the game but it was important I think for us to get 'game legs' and game shape for 60 minutes."

The Capitals face Chicago again for the pre-season finale on Sunday at 5:00 pm at Verizon Center.  It's the last tune up before the games start to count next Saturday, when the intensity will surely be much higher than any of these pre-season games.  After training camp and a seven-game pre-season, the players, coaches and fans are all ready to get things going for real.

"We had to persevere if we were to succeed." Coach Bruce Boudreau on tough 2-1 win over Buffalo.

THE RESULT: The Washington Capitals have been getting outscored lately in the third period of games, but they reversed that trend Sunday afternoon, as a late tally broke a 1-1 tie and gave the Caps a road victory over the Buffalo Sabres, 2-1 before 18,690 in HSBC Arena and an NBC national television audience.

The Capitals have entered the third period tied in four of their last six games, losing each of the three contests.  Courtesy of a solid -- if unspectacular -- effort this afternoon, a familiar story had a much happier ending.

"We talked about, going into the third, that we had to have the will to persevere and and the confidence to do it," Boudreau said when asked if the effort in the third period was a confidence boost for his team.  "I thought they dug deep and they blocked shots and did what they had to do tonight.  It was a hard-earned two points."

With the win, Washington inches to within three points of division-leading Tampa Bay.

Marcus Johansson deflected a Mathieu Perreault shot midway through the third period to lift the Caps past a struggling Buffalo squad.  Not only was it the game-winner, but it was also a power play marker, a precious asset the Caps just haven't had enough of this season.

Alex Ovechkin set up the goal, driving down the right wing drawing much of the Buffalo defense.  He got off a shot that Buffalo goalie Ryan Miller brushed aside with his blocker, but the rebound went straight to Perreault, who lifted a shot back at the cage.  Johansson, crashing the crease, tipped the puck as it went by and into the net.

Perreault also scored the first Caps goal in the second period, banging home a bad bounce off the boards past an out-of-position Miller (37 saves).

The late goal made for a happy ending.  But for much of the game, the Caps were following a all-too familiar script: not taking advantage of opportunities.

Washington went 0-for-4 on the power play in the first period, including 1:34 of 5-on-3 time.  They outshot Buffalo 16-8 in the first, including nine shots with the man advantage, but could not solve Miller.  On one particular save, Miller was down and Nick Backstrom had him dead to rights, but shot the puck directly into Miller's outstretched left pad for the save.

It's a play we've seen Backstrom bury countless times in his tenure, but just goes on a long list of missed opportunities this season for the young center.

Regardless, the two young pivots came through for the Caps today, once again showing glimpses of the potential both possess.  There will be a lot of talk with the upcoming trade deadline approaching about the Caps needing a quality, veteran second line center, and that talk is legitimate.  It's been an weakness of the Caps all season long.

We've seen flashes of brilliance from both Perreault and Johansson, but for all too brief periods.  The production over the long season just hasn't been there.

But for one afternoon, it was good enough.

So the Caps have taken four points through four games on this grueling five-game road trip.  A win in Pittsburgh on Monday would have to qualify the trip a huge success.

With the trade dealine looming so near, it's time to find out who these Washington Capitals really are.

CAPS NEWS NETWORK THREE STARS

3. Alexander Semin.  Gets the nod on the strength of one play, clearing the puck from the crease in scramble late in the game.  I think I've now seen everything.

2. Semyon Varlamov.  28 saves on 29 shots.  Solid positioning, only goal came on a screened shot on a power play.

1. Mathieu Perreault.  In the right place twice, scoring and getting the primary assist on Johansson's tip-in. We'll overlook his careless stick foul.

"One game like that does not a season make." David Steckel, on the team's encouraging defensive effort in the third period.

THE RESULT: Playing what Matt Bradley called "playoff-style hockey" in the third period, the Washington Capitals held on to a precious one-goal lead and defeated the Buffalo Sabres 4-2, before an announced sellout crowd at Verizon Center.

All the tickets might have been sold, but there were just enough empty seats -- and Buffalo fans -- to give the building an less-than-raucous aura for the mid-week affair.

The Capitals won their seventh straight game at home and improved to an NHL best 14-4-1 on the season.

As has been the case so often in this recent stretch of winning hockey, the Capitals jumped out to an early lead, controlling the play against a game, but undermanned, Sabres squad. Washington got a five-on-three power play goal and two tallies from the energy line, and looked comfortably strong for most of the first half of the game.

Then, at 12:07 of the second, cracks in the armor showed.

Derek Roy (wouldn't he look good in Red come trade deadline) flipped a shot past Michal Neuvirth with Mike Green in the box and just 48 seconds later, Jordan Leopold snapped an even-strength wrist shot past the screened goalie, cutting the lead to 3-2 and sending shivers down every Caps spine.

Neuvirth then faced a barrage of shots and, frankly, was lucky the score was not worse. He looked unsure on a couple of stops, and at least twice Buffalo shooters missed wide open nets.

But the Caps regrouped, killing an Alex Ovechkin delay-of-game penalty without a shot on goal, and seemed to gain momentum from the big kill.

In the third, the Capitals really buckled down and clogged the defensive zone. It was probably the best concentrated 20-minute defensive effort the team has put forth all season long. Buffalo got 10 shots on goal in the frame, but Neuvirth was up to the task.

Coach Bruce Boudreau spoke about his young netminder's strength in the final frame. "I think, for him, it's his experience having to go through two championship rounds in the playoffs [for AHL Hershey]. He knows when to really buckle down and he's protected the lead for us really good this year."

"He's growing up right before your eyes."

Boudreau said his team never panicked and he didn't give some big motivational speech between the second and third periods.

"I told them to stay the course because they were doing a really good job."

On a night Boudreau picked to play around with his forward combinations, the Capitals best line this evening was the one composed of grinders: Jason Chimera, David Steckel and Matt Bradley. Both Bradley and Steckel scored, with Chimera providing the primary assist to both. The plays were similar as well, with Chimera feeding a cutting teammate in the slot from behind the Buffalo net.

Bradley actually led the team in shots with five, ahead of Alexes Ovechkin and Semin by one each.

"When we try to be fancy and do things we shouldn't, that's when we get in trouble," Bradley said. "We're just playing a simple game. That's what we did tonight."

Steckel spoke of the chemistry on the newly-formed line. "Chimmer got in there and made some great plays and Brads and I just kind of mucked it up and we were in the right spots. If you do the right stuff and are working hard, it's easy to play together."

Boudreau offered praise for the trio. "They were really good I thought tonight. It's the first quarter of the season and you're trying to find things that are really gonna click that you'll leave them there. So we're doing a little bit of experimenting with the lines."

Steckel -- who was awarded tonight's hard hat -- echoed his coaches words on the Caps' effort, and perhaps made the best observation of the season: "With the exception of the two minutes in the second period, we played really well. We talked about it before the game and we came out and executed it. We need to build off it. One game like that does not a season make."

Indeed.  But it's a good place to start.

THE GOOD: Not enough can be said about how well the 25-39-10 line played. They were far and away the best line on the ice for either team, and really controlled the puck in the offensive zone, cycling and looking for opportune scoring chances.

Michal Neuvirth was strong again, except for those few moments in the second period. He turned away 31 shots - including all 10 in the third period – to improve to 12-3-0 on the season.

THE BAD: Eric Fehr was invisible. He had the least amount of ice time (14 shifts for 10:55) and was minus-one, managing just two shots on goal. No hits. No takeaways.

THE UGLY: Not really all that ugly, but I was not a big fan of the reconfigured lines tonight. Marcus Johansson is just not ready to center Ovechkin and Mike Knuble. He looked tenative with the puck on several occasions, once opting to pass backward from inside the faceoff circle with an open lane to the net.

THE STATS:  Backstrom (6) from Semin (11) and Laich (8) PP at 12:31 of 1st.  Bradley (2) from Chimera (4) and Alzner (2) at 17:04 of 1st.  Steckel (3) from Chimera (5) and Bradley (4) at 2:45 of 2nd. Semin (14) unassisted EN at 19:56 of 3rd.

NEXT GAME: At Atlanta Thrashers Friday at 7:30 pm.

CAPS NEWS NETWORK THREE STARS

3.  Michal Neuvirth.  Despite a shaky two minutes in the second, he was a stone wall in the third when the Caps needed him to be.

2.  Jason Chimera.  Both passes were things of beauty.

1.  Matt Bradley.  Goal and assist.  Led the team in shots and was very strong on the forecheck all night.

CAPS NOTES: Alexander Semin scored an empty netter with four seconds left in regulation and added an assist on Nicklas Backstrom’s first period power-play goal to extended his point streak to nine games (nine goals, eight assists) and surpassing Alex Ovechkin for the longest streak by a Capital this season (eight games). Washington improved to 11-1-1 when Semin registers at least a point and 10-0-0 when he scores a goal.

Backstrom scored his sixth goal of the year on a two-man advantage with 7:29 remaining in the first period. Backstrom, who is riding a four-game point streak (two goals, five assists), has collected 21 points (six goals, 15 assists) in 19 games this season.

Washington upped their record to 10-0-0 when scoring a power play goal.  For the season, the Caps rank seventh in the NHL at 21.9 percent.

Buffalo Sabres (7-9-3-17, 4th NE) v. Washington Capitals (13-4-1-27, 1st SE)

7:00 pm, Verizon Center, Washington DC

__________________________________________________

The Washington Capitals, winners of eight of their last ten games, look to avenge one of those losses, a 3-2 OT loss to the Buffalo Sabres Saturday night in Buffalo.  The defeat snapped a season-high six-game win streak for the Caps.

The Caps got right back to their winning ways, knocking off Atlanta at home on Sunday, extending a six-game home winning streak, and the Caps hope that streak doesn't suffer the same fate as the last one did.

The Sabres have won four of their last five games, all of which required extra time. 

Buffalo is led, as always, by their goaltender Ryan Miller.  The U.S. Olympic goalie returned two games ago from a hip injury which caused him to miss six games.  He picked up right where he left off, making 23 saves against the Caps and 36 saves in a 4-3 OT win against Vancouver Monday night.

Derek Roy paces the Sabres offense, with eight goals and 13 assists (+6), placing him tied for seventh in the league in scoring.

Coach Bruce Boudreau has toyed with his lines the last several games, and if this morning's skate is any indication, he plans to again tonight.  Rookie center Marcus Johansson was between Alex Ovechkin and Mike Knuble on the top line, with Nicklas Backstrom centering Alexander Semin and Brooks Laich.

Semin has an eight-game point streak entering tonight, the third-longest active streak in the league (Nicklas Lidstrom, Justin Williams) and tied with Alex Ovechkin for the longest by a Capital this season.

Tom Poti did not skate this morning as he continues to rehab a nagging lower body injury, and Tomas Fleischmann and D. J. King stayed out for extra skating, indicating they would be healthy scrathes.  Of Fleischmann sitting, Boudreau told reporters after practice, "It's his turn."

The Caps have averaged more than four goals per game over their last 11 contests, but have surrendered three or more in six of seven games since.

__________________________________________________

LEADERS

BUF:  C Derek Roy (8-13-21, +6), LW Thomas Vanek (6-7-13, -3), G Ryan Miller (5-5-2, 2.64, .906)

WAS:  LW Alex Ovechkin (10-15-25, +6), LW Alexander Semin (13-10-23, +9), G Michal Neuvirth (11-3-0, 2.60, .910)

INJURIES

BUF:  D Craig Rivet (Flu-QUE), RW Patrick Kaleta (UBI-QUE)

WAS:  D Tom Poti (LBI-OUT)

STATS

BUF:  GF/G:  2.58 (22);  GA/G: 3.16 (24th)  PP: 10.8% (28th)  PK: 78.1% (23)  FO: 47.9% (27th)

WAS: GF/G 3.61 (1st);  GA/G: 2.61 (12th)  PP: 21.9% (7th)  PK: 84.2% (12th)  FO: 50.7% (12th)

The Washington Capitals got goals from Jason Chimera, Mike Green and Boyd Gordon, and Jose Theodore outdueled Olympic hero Ryan Miller, defeating the Buffalo Sabres 3-1 before a sellout crowd at HSBC Center in Buffalo.

Theodore made 23 saves in the win, as the Caps outshot Buffalo 40-24 in a choppy game that at times resembled an early season contest where the two teams were just trying to find their game legs.

After the two week break for the Olympic tournament, it's not surprising that the teams would show some rust.  In this one, the Caps showed less rust, and kept their legs longer in the match, as Buffalo seemed to run out of steam in the third period.

Jeff Schultz had two assists in the contest.

The game marked the return of Ryan Miller to the Buffalo lineup and he played admirably, especially in the first period.  But the Caps had their own hero this night in Theodore. 

"When you play against a guy like Miller, you know he's not going to give up too many goals," Theodore told the media after the game. "It was a real tight hockey game, and I'm really happy with the way we got the win."

"He makes the saves, and that's what wins you the big games," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said. "That's what Miller does for them, and that's what we got from Jose."

The win marked the culmination of a busy day for the Capitals, as GM George McPhee made four deals to bolster the team for the stretch run and the hoefully long playoff drive.

The Caps acquired D Joe Corvo, RW Scott Walker, C Eric Belanger and re-acquired former D Milan Jurcina from Columbus just six weeks after trading him there with Chris Clark.

McPhee completed the deals by surrendering just one player off the big league club, defenseman Brian Pothier, who goes to Carolina in the Corvo deal, and one player from AHL Hershey, winger Oskar Osala, who went in the same deal.

The rest of the compensation involved draft picks in the 2010 and 2011 drafts.

So a busy trade deadline day followed by a big win over a top-notch goalie.  Just another day in the office? 

Not quite, but it does signal a return to work for the league's top team.

BOX SCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

The Washington Capitals were shut down by Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller and the rest of his defensive teammates, accumulating 35 shots -- but very few second chances -- and leave the snowy, windy city shut out for the first time this season, losing 3-0 before a spirited crowd of 17,982 at HSBC Arena.

The Capitals, in the midst of playing nine of 11 games on the road, showed it last night.  They played with little of the energy or enthusiasm that was evident as recently as Monday night, a 3-0 shutout win over division rival Tampa Bay.

In that one, goalie Semyon Varlamov was sparkling, but the young Russian sat this one out, with what the team described as a lower-body injury, widely thought of as a strained groin, sustained in the scrap Monday night.

In his place was Jose Theodore (L, 7-4-5 3.06, .902), and while the veteran did not have a bad night (25 saves), he did give up a goal from behind the goal line and gave up a huge rebound that the same player, defenseman Henrik Tallinder, followed up and beat him on.

The biggest factor in the game last night, though, was Buffalo's outstanding goalie, and potential U.S. Olympian Ryan Miller.  Miller has been outstanding all season long, and last night was no different, stoning the Caps throughout the night. 

Early in the game he robbed Brendan Morrison on the power play, and in the third period stood on his head on several occasions to keep the scoresheet clean.

Miller made a diving glove save on Morrison again in the third with about 13 minutes left, and flicked away a Nicklas Backstrom backhand from close range minutes later.

"Those were two jaw-dropping saves," defenseman Steve Montador, who scored a first-period goal, told the wire services post-game. "There were stretches in the third where we probably could have done a better job, but at that time of the game we had dominated and done a good job of limiting their top line."

The loss prevented the Caps (19-6-6) from continuing their winning streak, which had reached six games.

"You can get to six [wins in a row] and be satisfied and say, 'Hey, we're pretty good.' Or you can say, 'Listen, I want to be great and I want to push the envelope,' " Boudreau told the media.

"It was the effort on our part," Brooks Laich said. "We're the bigger team, the faster team, the stronger team and we got outworked. We knew they were going to bring a big effort tonight and we didn't respond."

The Capitals are off until Friday, when they host the Carolina Hurricanes at 7:00 pm.

________________________________________________________

THREE STARS

1. R. Miller - BUF (Saves: 35, Save Pct: 1.000)

2. N. Gerbe - BUF (Goals: 1, Assists: 1)

3. H. Tallinder - BUF (Goals: 1, Assists: 0)

After the Caps minor leaguers and players returning from injury beat the regular Chicago Black Hawks Saturday night, the home crowd tonight will get to see the pre-season debut of Washington's top line.

According to Capitals Insider, Alex Ovechkin will team with Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Knuble on the No. 1 line tonight as the Caps host the Buffalo Sabres, a team they beat last week in both squad's pre-season openers.

Missing from the lineup for the third straight game will be center Michael Nylander, the subject of trade rumors since last season's all-star break. Nylander is in the last year of an inflated contract, and neither he nor the team is happy carrying him on the bench, as he was most of the playoffs last season.

Eric Fehr and Tomas Fleischman both will watch as well, still recovering from injuries.

Jose Theodore will start in goal, his first pre-season game action. "We'll see how Theo plays tonight," coach Bruce Boudreau said. "He's practiced really well. I'm hoping he has a great game."

In the win over the Hawks, Chris Clark and Kyle Wilson both had a goal and an assist, and Mathieu Perrault scored at 4:48 of overtime to send the Caps home with a 2-0-0 pre-season record.

Washington out shot Chicago's regulars 30-26.

Michael Neuvirth went the distance in goal, registering 24 saves.

 

THREE DAY SCHEDULE (courtesy capitals.nhl.com)

 

Monday, Sept. 21

10 a.m.: Morning skate

11:15 a.m.: Practice (non-game players)

7 p.m.: vs. Buffalo, Verizon Center

Radio: Caps Radio 1500 and 820 AM, WashingtonCaps.com

Tuesday, Sept. 22

10:30 a.m.: Practice, Kettler Capitals Iceplex

Wednesday, Sept. 23

10 a.m.: Morning skate

11:15 a.m.: Practice (non-game players)

7 p.m.: vs. Chicago, Verizon Center

Radio: WashingtonCaps.com

Alexandre Giroux, Mike Knuble and Jay Beagle scored for the Capitals in regulation, and Brian Pothier netted the game winner in OT to give the Caps a 4-3 win against Buffalo in their first pre-season game.

Pothier's goal came on a 5-on-3 advantage in the extra frame after Mike Weber boarded Brendan Morrison, knocking him into the boards from behind. Morrison stayed down for a couple minutes, but was described as "fine" after the game. Pothier added and assist on Knuble's goal earlier in the third period.

Semyon Varlamov stopped 17 shots in the first two periods, but surrendered three goals on six shots in the third. "I think Varly was outstanding the first two periods," Coach Bruce Boudreau said. "They got [three] in the third, but I thought he was really good."

Washington won 62 perfect of their face-offs, with Beagle (70 percent), Brendan Morrison (68 percent) and Nicklas Backstrom (63 percent) leading the way.

"There were a lot of good things," Boudreau said of the game. "In the third period, even though they got three goals, we were the dominant team, which was good."

NOTES: Defenseman Tyler Sloan finished with five blocked shots.

The Caps out shot Buffalo 33-23. Backstrom led the team with five shots, Beagle had four.

Backstrom assisted on Knuble's tip in and the game-winner. Morrison and Chris Clark assisted on Giroux's goal and Andrew Gorgon got the helper on Beagle's tally.

Capitals Insider has a look at the lines for tonight's preseason matchup with the Buffalo Sabres.

No Ovie. No Semin. No Green. No Nylander. But it should be a good look at some guys that coul dbe called upon this season as the grind of 82 games takes its toll.

It'll be the first time we see Mike Knuble and Brendan Morrison pull on the red, white and blue. Knuble scored twice earlier this week to lead his team to the Gaetan Duchesne Cup, the winning team in a round robin tournament coach Bruce Boudreau set up to relieve some of the tediousness of training camp.

Here's the schedule for this weekend at Kettler:

Thursday, Sept. 17
10 a.m.: Morning skate
11:15 a.m.: Practice
1 p.m.: Practice
7 p.m.: at Buffalo, HSBC Arena, Buffalo, N.Y.
Audio: WashingtonCaps.com

Friday, Sept. 18
10 a.m.: Group A practice
11:30 a.m.: Group B practice

Saturday, Sept. 19
10 a.m.: Morning skate
11:15 a.m.: Group B practice
8:30 p.m. ET: at Chicago, United Center
Radio: Caps Radio 1500 and 820 AM, WashingtonCaps.com TV: CSN (Chicago)

And great big Happy Birthday to Alex Ovechkin, who turns all of 24 years of age today. It's good to be Ovie!

In an uneven but exciting affair, the Washington Capitals lost in overtime to the Buffalo Sabres 5-4. Needing a single point to clinch the Southeast Division championship, the Caps received just that.

But an overtime goal by Jason Pominville, off a turnover in his own end by future hall-of-famer Sergei Fedorov, ruined the celebration.

As the Sabres collected on the Verizon Center ice to celebrate, um, something, the Caps headed to the locker room with slumped shoulders, knowing that they left a needed point out on the ice tonight. New Jersey beat Tampa by an identical 5-4 overtime score, so the Caps find themselves just two points ahead of Satan's minions with four games remaining.

Oh by the way, three of which are on the road due to the VC being overrun with the legions of fans of Bemidji State University.

Fedorov had a heck of a night, scoring twice on big, booming slap shots. But he also took a lazy hook which led to Buffalo's third goal in addition to the turnover in overtime.

Actually, the real score of tonight's game was Caps 7, Buffalo 2. Three of Buffalo's goals touched a Caps player last, and the second goal was a thing of beauty for Viktor Kozlov, redirecting a Clarke MacArthur pass past a sliding Simeon Varlamov like he meant to.

Varlamov, making his fourth start, looked sharp at times and shaky at times, something one would expect from a rookie playing in a playoff atmosphere. He is a much better skater and puck-handler than Jose Theodore, so much so the comparisons are drastic.

But he found himself out of position and scrambling every single time the puck was behind his own net. He's a tremendous athlete, that much is certain. And his athleticism allowed him to recover from mistakes several times tonight. But he still has some growing to do before he's an NHL regular.

Alex Ovechkin scored his 55th of the season, keeping alive the possible 60-goal repeat. Brooks Laich made a nifty backhand pass through the crease allowing Ovie to deposit the puck into a mostly open net.

And Ovie's running mate, Alexander Semin, registered his 30th of the year. That gives the Caps three players with 30-plus goals, and with Fed's pair he cracks double digits, giving the Caps nine players with 10 or more goals.

Washington plays their last home game Sunday against the suddenly resurgent Atlanta Thrashers at 3:00 pm.

Fans should celebrate back-to-back division titles. But the team has bigger goals, and leaving the extra point behind tonight was disappointing.

Enjoy the slideshow. Uncle Ted spoke to season ticket holders before the game, so some shots of that are in there as well. The big news from the chalk talk is that Uncle Ted thinks they'll have to have a waiting list for season tickets next year. Caps fever, catch it!

The Buffalo Sabres (37-30-9-83, third in Northeast, 10th in East) enter tonight's game against the Washington Capitals (47-23-7-101, first in Southeast, second in East) in a position all too familiar to Caps fans.

Currently, Buffalo is in tenth place in the conference, six points behind eighth place New York Rangers, with six games remaining. They actually have two games in hand over the Rangers, but the Florida Panthers are in the mix as well, in ninth place with 87 points. So every point is crucial for the Sabres.

To make matters worse, Buffalo embarks on a three-game road trip where they will face the Caps, New Jersey tomorrow night, and Detroit on Monday. Their fleeting playoff hopes could be over at the end of the weekend.

Washington, on the other hand, knows that they'll be playing into mid-April, just not against whom. With the Southeast Division sewn up, the Caps have the conference's second seed in sight, and currently lead the aforementioned Devils by three in that race. The Capitals are 28-9-2 at home this season, and would like nothing more than to achieve home-ice advantage for as long as they can in the playoffs.

The season series between the two teams favors Washington, two games to one. The Sabres spanked the Caps 5-0 in Buffalo on Nov. 1, with the Caps taking a pair of one goal games in the span of four days in December.

The offense seems to be heating back up for the Caps, as they've registers 14 goals in their last three home games, all wins, after a disappointing four-game home losing streak.

The Caps are led, as always, by Alex Ovechkin. The Russian Machine has four goals and three assists in his last three games and has reached 100 points for the third time in his four NHL seasons. With 54 goals, he still has an outside shot to reach the magical 60 goal mark, though he needs six goals in five games.

Want to challenge him?

Defenseman Mike Green reached a lofty achievement himself in the Caps 5-3 win over the New York Islanders Wednesday night. He broke the mark for team power play goals by a defenseman, with 19, and scored his 30th goal of the season, a feat accomplished by just eight defensemen in NHL history, and first since Washington's Kevin Hatcher in the 1993-94 season.

Alexander Semin needs one goal for the 30-goal mark, and Brooks Laich has 19 goals, just one short of a milestone as well.

Coach Bruce Boudreau expects to have Simeon Varlamov in net tonight. He is 3-0-0 in four games with a 1.74 goals against average and a sparkling .939 save percentage.

Buffalo should counter with Ryan Miller (31-16-8, 2.52, .918), traditionally a Caps-killer, with a lifetime 8-3-0 record and 2.53 goals against average when facing the Caps.
__________________________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS

WAS: PP-2nd (25.2%, 79/314); PK-20th (79.9%, 73/364)
BUF: PP-7th (21.5%, 72/335); PK-10th (82.7%, 54/313)
__________________________________________________
INJURIES

WAS: G Brent Johnson (Hip-IR); LW Donald Brashear (Knee-IR); C Boyd Gordon (Finger-IR); RW Chris Clark (Wrist-IR); LW Quintin Laing (Spleen-Out)
BUF: None listed.

Coach Bruce Boudreau's stated message before Tuesday night's game in Buffalo was simple: To be considered an elite team you have to win on the road in the tough buildings. And it does not get any tougher for the Caps than Buffalo's HSBC Arena, where they had lost seven of their last eight games.

His troops responded to the message, scoring early and holding down a mostly inept Buffalo offense until the final few moments, holding on to a 4-2 win and keeping the usually raucous pro-Sabres crowd out of the game.

Washington (24-11-3-51, first in Southeast) hushed the 18,000-plus very early, as Brooks Laich deposited a power play goal at 1:57 of the first period, on a rebound of a Niklas Backstrom shot. It was Laich's 11th of the season and sixth in nine games.

Chris Bourque, son of Hall of Famer Ray Bourque, scored his first NHL goal later in the period, converting a long rebound off a Ryan Miller kick save. He was reunited with David Steckel and Eric Fehr on a line that contributed heavily to Boudreau's AHL Calder Cup winning team in Hershey two years ago.

"I was lucky with the rebound right on my stick," Bourque said. "I wasn't going to miss that one."

Backstrom would make the score 3-0 midway through the second period, banging home a rebound of a Viktor Kozlov shot. Backstrom finished with a goal and assist, and Kozlov had two helpers.

Buffalo (17-15-5-39, third in Northeast) tried to make a go of it in the third, outshooting the Caps 16-11 in the frame. Adam Mair slipped one past Jose Theodore at 7:41 to briefly inspire the Buffalo faithful, but Jose Theodore (29 saves) proved up to the task, stopping Thomas Vanek and Nathan Gerbe at point blank range in the third.

Theodore continued his recent spate of good play and ended his own personal five game losing streak in Buffalo, dating back to his days with Montreal. Theo has won his last four games and seems to be gaining confidence every time out on the ice.

Boyd Gordon closed the Washington scoring with an opposite blue line empty netter with 43 seconds remaining while shorthanded. The Sabres added a consolation goal with 11 seconds, as Clarke MacArthur tapped in a rebound to conclude the power play.

Washington returns home to begin a four-game home stand against Tampa Thursday night at 7:00 PM. The Caps will also host the New York Rangers, Philadelphia and Columbus on the stand.

Photo by Getty Images.
__________________________________________________
SCORESHEET

WAS: Laich (11) from Backstrom and Kozlov (1-1:57-PP); Bourque (1) from Steckel and Fehr (1-9:02); Backstrom (11) from Kozlov and Green (2-12:11-PP); Gordon (4) unassisted (3-19:17-EN-SH)

BUF: Mair (5) from Gaustad and Lydman (3-7:41); MacArthur (11) from Hecht and Spacek (3-19:49-PP)
__________________________________________________
THREE STARS

1. N. Backstrom - WAS (Goals: 1, Assists: 1)
2. V. Kozlov - WAS (Goals: 0, Assists: 2)
3. P. Gaustad - BUF (Goals: 0, Assists: 1)
__________________________________________________
NOTES

Alex Ovechkin was held without a point for just the second time in 11 games. It was reported that his grandfather passed away over the weekend.

The Caps have won nine of their last 10 and 11-of-13 to open a 12-point lead over Carolina in the NHL's Southeast Division.

Backstrom has 38 points in his last 26 games.

Defenseman Shaone Morrisonn left the game late in the third after taking a shot off his lower leg.

The Washington Capitals (23-11-3-49, first in Southeast) travel to upstate New York to visit the Buffalo Sabres (17-14-5, third in Northeast) at 7:00 PM from the HSBC Arena.

The Caps are one of the league's hottest teams in December having won 10 of their last 12 games, including Sunday night's dispatching of Toronto, 4-1, before a packed house. The sellout crowd was also treated to the retirement ceremony of Mike Gartner's number 11. Brooks Laich and Alex Ovechkin each had a pair of goals in the contest.

The Capitals' previous win to that was over these same Sabres, last Friday night, 3-2. Viktor Kozlov, Boyd Gordon, and Ovechkin all scored in that one, and Jose Theodore played well in the victory.

In fact, Theodore has experienced a renaissance of sorts in the last three games. Since being pulled in the first period against the Rangers last Tuesday, Theodore has stopped 64 out 68 shots on goal and has earned the win in each of the last three games.

Brent Johnson returns from injury to back up Theodore. Simeon Varlamov was returned to AHL Hershey following the Toronto game.

The revolving injury door keeps swinging for the Caps. Returning last game were defensemen Mike Green and Jeff Schultz, but Matt Bradley took a hard hit into the boards and left the game woozy, and Karl Alzner took a couple shots to his hand. Both are questionable for tonight's game.

Tyler Sloan was sent out to make room for Green and Schultz, but might be recalled if Alzner can not go.

Alex Ovechkin was named NHL first star of the week for last week. He tallied five goals and an assist in three games. For the season, he has 49 points (25 goals, 24 assists) in 35 games.

Buffalo is expected to start Ryan Miller in goal. He missed Friday night's game in DC. Miller is 15-9-5, 2.62, .911 in 29 games this season.

Thomas Vanek (25-7-32, -3), Derek Roy (11-20-31, even), and Jason Pominville (10-17-27, -2) pace the Sabres, who lost two of three last week.
__________________________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS

WAS: PP-5th (22.9%, 35/153); PK-23rd (79.9%, 35/174)
BUF: PP-12th (19.6%, 32/163); PK-4th (87.0%, 19/146)
__________________________________________________
INJURIES

WAS: D John Erskine (Concussion-IR); D Brian Pothier (Concussion-OUT); C Sergei Federov (Ankle-IR); D Tom Poti (Groin-IR); LW Alexander Semin (Back-IR); Tomas Fleischmann (Pneumonia-OUT); Karl Alzner (Hand-Questionable); Matt Bradley (Head/Neck-Questionable)

BUF: D Craig Rivet (Upper body-IR); C Tim Connolly (Ribs-IR); C Paul Gaustad (Upper body-IR); C Nathan Gerbe (Upper body-IR); RW Patrick Kaleta (Head-Out)

One of the appeals of professional sports is that every time you go to the arena, field or court, you might see something you've never seen before in your life. Alex Ovechkin's game-winning goal in the third period was one of those moments.

Defenseman Bryan Helmer pushed the puck along the boards where Ovechkin collected it. The reigning NHL MVP deked defenseman Henrik Tallinder, then while Tallender was regaining his balance, slid the puck off his back hand through Tallinder's legs just inside the blue line, putting the puck on Ovechkin's forehand.

Tallinder got part of a check on Ovechkin as the left winger was going by, and as he fell to his knees, the "Great Eight" got enough on his shot to beat goalie Patrick Lalime short side, taking a 3-1 lead.

The three goals would stand up, as the Caps held off a late third period flurry to defeat the Buffalo Sabres, 3-2, before 18,277 at the Verizon Center.

Ovechkin appeared to give the Capitals a 2-0 lead late in the second period, but a goalie interference call against teammate Brooks Laich negated it, motivating Ovechkin even further.

Washington (22-11-3-45, first in Southeast) received goals from Viktor Kozlov and Boyd Gordon in addition to Ovechkin's marker, and veteran minor leaguer Bryan Helmer chipped in two assists.

Helmer, 36, was recently named as one of the captains in the AHL All Star game in January, but he'll gladly trade that honor for more nights like tonight in the NHL.

Jose Theodore turned away 22 of the 24 shots he faced, but he certainly could not be faulted for the second goal.

Sabres defenseman Toni Lydman misfired on a slap shot from the point and the puck hit Maxim Afinogenov, who was trying to simply get out of the way. The puck then managed to bounce behind Theodore, pulling Buffalo (16-14-5-37, third in Northeast) to within one goal.

The Caps would stymie the Sabres for the remaining 1:49 and extend their home record to 14-1-1, best in the Eastern Conference. Carolina knocked off Atlanta, keeping pace with the Caps, eight back in the Southeast Division race.


Photo by AP.
___________________________________________________
SCORESHEET

WAS: Kozlov (9) from Backstrom and Helmer (2-17:46); Gordon (3) from Jurcina (3-1:58); Ovechkin (23) from Helmer (3-8:27)

BUF: Vanek (25) from Stafford and Spacek (3-6:13-PP); Afinogenov (2) from Lydman and Kotalik (3-18:11)
___________________________________________________
THREE STARS

1. B. Helmer - WAS (Goals: 0, Assists: 2)
2. D. Brashear - WAS (Goals: 0, Assists: 0)
3. A. Ovechkin - WAS (Goals: 1, Assists: 0)
___________________________________________________
NOTES

Caps' Captain Chris Clark returned from the Long Term Injured Reserve (LTIR) after missing 14 games with a stress fracture in his forearm.

Washington out shot Buffalo 34-24.

Sergei Fedorov has been put on LTIR, retroactive to Dec. 14th. He is eligible to return Jan. 9 vs. Columbus.

The Washington Capitals (21-11-3-45, first in Southeast) host the Buffalo Sabres (16-13-5-37, third in Northeast) at 7:00 PM from Verizon Center.

The Capitals enter play tonight winners of nine of their last 11 games, including Tuesday's come-from-behind 5-4 OT win over the New York Rangers. Down 4-0, the Caps completed the comeback with the overtime winner from Shaone Morrisonn, the defenseman's first goal of the season.

Alex Ovechkin started and capped the comeback, netting the team's first and fourth goals, while Tomas Fleischmann and Viktor Kozlov chipped in as well.

Jose Theodore got the win, despite allowing goals on three of the first five shots he faced and being lifted in the first period. He would return to start the second period and give up one more goal, but thereafter shut the door on the Blueshirts, allowing his skaters to collect goals and, ultimately, victory.

The Caps continue to be plagued by injury. Brent Johnson becomes the latest addition to the injury list, as he will sit out tonight. The team recalled Simeon Varlamov from Hershey to back up Theodore tonight. With another game Sunday, Varlamov might stick around for a few games.

In addition to Johnson, also missing tonight are: Mike Green (shoulder), John Erskine (concussion), Jeff Schultz (broken finger), Sergei Fedorov (ankle), Alexander Semin (back), Tom Poti (groin) and Tomas Fleischmann (flu).

The team does benefit from the return of its captain, Chris Clark. Clark comes off the Long Term Injury List (LTIR) with the broken forearm. Donald Brashear also returns from an injured leg.

Andrew Gordon, Bryan Helmer and Alexander Giroux were all recalled from Hershey (AHL) to fill out the roster.

Buffalo has lost three out of their last four games, including back-to-back OT losses to Montreal and Pittsburgh their last two times out. They are hit pretty hard by the injury bug too, missing four of their regulars, including veteran defenseman Craig Rivet.

The Sabres are led on offense by Tomas Vanek, second in the league in goals scored with 24, though he has just 6 assists. Derek Roy (11-19-30, +1) and Jason Pominville (9-17-26, -1) are Vanek's set-up men.

Ryan Miller is the starting goalie for Buffalo. One of the league's best, Miller is 14-9-5 with a 2.61 GAA and .911 save percentage. Patrick Lalime (2-4-2, 3.09, .888) is the little-used veteran backup.
__________________________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS

WAS: PP-5th (23.0%, 34/148); PK-24th (80.0%, 34/170)
BUF: PP-13th (18.7%, 19/155); PK-3rd (87.0%, 18/138)
__________________________________________________
INJURIES

WAS: D Jeff Schultz (Finger-IR); D John Erskine (Concussion-OUT); D Brian Pothier (Concussion-Out); C Sergei Federov (Ankle-OUT); G Brent Johnson (Hip-OUT); D Mike Green (Shoulder-OUT); D Tom Poti (Groin-OUT); LW Alexander Semin (Back-OUT)

BUF: D Craig Rivet (Upper body-IR); C Tim Connolly (Ribs-IR); C Paul Gaustad (Upper body-Questionable); C Nathan Gerbe (Upper body-IR); C Jochen Hecht (Ear-Questionable); RW Patrick Kaleta (Head-Out)

The Washington Capitals (5-3-1-11, 2nd place in the Southeast Division) travel to western New York to face the Buffalo Sabres (6-2-2-14, 2nd place in the Northeast Division) at HSBC Arena at 7:00 pm.

The Capitals come into this contest having won their last two games, including Tuesday night's 4-3 shootout victory over the Nashville Predators. In the game, Alexander Semin continued his hot streak, with a regulation goal and assist, and a shootout tally as well. Michael Nylander also scored in the shootout, and it was his goal, the fourth for the Caps, that made the difference as G Jose Theodore closed the door on Nashville shooter Martin Erat. Theodore saved 23 of 26 shots faced.

Viktor Kozlov returned to the ice for Washington and netted his first goal of the season, while Dave Steckel scored his second shorthanded goal, on a beautiful tape-to-tape pass from Semin.

Washington will find itself, once again, without MVP Alex Ovcehkin, who is in Russia with his ailing grandfather. The Caps expect Ovechkin back next week, but certainly not for this game. The Caps will benefit from the return of D Tom Poti, who has missed much of the early part of the season with a sore groin. He skated at practice both Thursday and Friday, and the team sent D Tyler Sloan back to Hershey in anticipation of Poti's return.

Buffalo started the season on fire, winning their first four games by a combined score of 17-5. They've scrapped a little the week however, falling in succession to Colorado, Ottawa and Tampa Bay, the last two on home ice. The Sabres are a gifted offensive squad, led by Thomas Vanek, the leading goal scorer in the NHL so far. His nine goals are one more than the Caps' Semin.

Their losing streak has coincided with D Craig Rivet's injury, as he's out with a knee injury, and defenders Jaroslav Spacek and Teppo Numinen are veterans left to pick up the slack. G Ryan Miller is one of the league's best though, as his 2.07 GAA and .928 S% would attest. The Sabres currently have the league's best goal differential.
__________________________________________________
SPECIAL TEAMS

WAS: PP-16th (17.8%, 8/45); PK-20th (78.8%, 11/52)

BUF: PP-8th (21.4%, 12/56); PK-3rd (88.6%, 5/44)
__________________________________________________
WHO'S HOT

WAS: LW Alexander Semin (tied for league lead in points with 16); C Sergei Federov (points in 7 of 9 games, tied for team +/- lead at +7)

BUF: LW Thomas Vanek (9-3-12, +3); RW Maxim Afinogenov (0-7-7, -1); LW Clarke Macarthur (5-2-7, -2)

WHO'S NOT

WAS: RW Chris Clark (joins Ds Schultz and Morrisonn as only players to have appeared in every game this season without a goal)

BUF: C Derek Roy (1 goal in 10 games); RW Drew Stafford (2 goals on 26 shots); D Andrej Sekera (0-5-5, team low -4)
__________________________________________________
INJURIES

WAS: D Brain Pothier (concussion-OUT); LW Alex Ovechkin (personal-OUT); D Tom Poti (groin-PROBABLE)

BUF: D Craig Rivet (knee-OUT); C Tim Connolly (back-OUT); LW Jochen Hecht (finger-OUT)