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.

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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)

BOX SCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

Washington, D.C. -- The Washington Capitals received six goals from five different players, and goalie Semyon Varlamov was not dented until well after the outcome had been decided, as the Caps cruised to a 6-2 win over a very tired Florida Panthers team, before not quite a capacity crowd at Verizon Center.

Florida was playing its third game in four nights, beating Colorado in overtime last night at home, and it really showed. 

The Panthers never really had their legs, and it got worse as the night went on, as they took penalty after penalty, cumulating with rookie Mike Duco taking seven minutes worth of major penalty time for instigating and fighting (plus a misconduct and game misconduct) after he jumped Alexandre Giroux solely because Giroux had the temerity to finish a heavy check behind the Panther goal.

Coach Bruce Boudeau was pointed on his assessment of Duco's play, on which the Caps scored twice, putting the game out of reach.  "You get a good hit, and not a hard hit, and you take exception to a hit?" he said.  "It's stupid.  It's a dumb thing and [Duco] took their team totally out of a chance to win the game."

As for the Caps scoring, it was early, often, and varied.  Alexander Semin, returning from a seven game absence with a wrist injury, scored twice, the first on a wicked wrist shot to start the festivities, and later on the seven minute power play.

"[Semin] didn't miss a beat at all," Brendan Morrison (power play goal, two assists) said. "He got us going with an early goal, a beautiful goal -- a toe drag and a great shot. Not too many guys can do that. It got us going on the bench."

Asked about the performance of the "other" Alex, Boudreau quipped, "He was well-rested.  He should have had a lot of energy."

The Caps got three power plays goals in twelve chances, something they have been struggling with in recent games.  And Matt Bradley added a short-handed marker -- a "change-up" as he described it -- the first for Washington this season.

Washington out shot Florida 44-28, a testament to the complete domination of a very tired team. 

"They could have been a little tired," Morrison said.  "We talked about getting on them early."

"I like the way we followed the game plan in the beginning [because] we thought they would be tired," Boudreau said of the Panthers, who got into D.C. around 3:00 am. "[If] we attacked them early and got them down early, they wouldn't have the strength to come back. It worked well."

Captain Chris Clark talked about the defensive effort being triggered by the good puck movement on offense.  "Our good defense came from us having the puck in the offensive zone."

"We had a lot of chances at the net and we just kept piling on down low and not turning the puck over on the blue lines or up high where they could get an odd-man rush."

Varlamov made 26 saves on 28 shots, and made just one mistake -- allowing a big rebound to Steven Weiss, who followed his own shot and beat the young netminder to get Florida on the board.  The Panthers got another one just a few moments later on a puck the looked like it was redirected twice.

The win was the Capitals' fourth straight overall and it improved their record against the Southeast Division to 6-0-0.

It's also the third win in three games against Florida, all without Alex Ovechkin.  The Great Eight missed the first two contests with his shoulder injury and tonight's affair due to his two-game suspension for a kneeing game misconduct again Carolina Monday night.

The Caps play without Ovechkin again Saturday night against a reeling Philadelphia Flyers squad, who lost 3-0 to Vancouver this evening.

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THREE STARS

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

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

3. S. Varlamov - WAS (Saves: 26, Save Pct: .929)

According to ESPN.com (of all places), and confirmed by Captials Insider, Alex Ovechkin has been suspended for two games follwing his second game misconduct ejection in three games for the kneeing major he was assessed in last night's 3-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.

"I regret that this has happened," Ovechkin said in a statement released by the league. "I'm glad that Tim [Gleason] wasn't injured because I never ever want to see anyone get hurt. I am disappointed to miss these games and I can't wait to get back on the ice next week to help my team."

Ovechkin skated before practice today for a couple of minutes, and was listed as "day-to-day" with a sore right knee.  The diagnosis is much better than the original fears from watching the 235 pound winger collide with Hurricanes defenseman Gleason and writhe on the ice for several moments before being helped from the ice by Capitals trainer Greg Smith and center Nicklas Backstrom.

The Washington Capitals got two goals from Nicklas Backstrom and 35 saves from Jose Theodore, making his first start in over two weeks to beat Southeast Division foe Carolina on the road, 3-1.

But more importantly to the Capitals (16-5-6) was an injury to their two-time reigning Hart Trophy winner, Alex Ovechkin.

Ovechkin, trying to check Carolina defenseman Tim Gleason, sustained an apparent right knee injury when the two collided knee-to-knee in the first period.

The team released a statement to say that Ovechkin will not have an MRI tonight, but rather wait until the swelling goes down to get a better assessment of the injury.  The rugged left winger was observed by members of the press walking, apparently without crutches or a brace, on his way to the team bus after the game.

After Backstrom was wiped out by a big hit moments earlier, Ovechkin lined up Gleason for a hard check.  Gleason managed to move his upper body to avoid the hit high, but their lower bodies collided, with Ovechkin taking the brunt of the contact.  Gleason returned to the ice just a couple of shifts later.

Ovechkin was assessed a kneeing major penalty and game misconduct on the play, and the team managed to kill off the five-minute major.  Coming on the heels of his recent boarding penalty against Buffalo last week, the league will have to review the hit and consider disciplinary action.

This type of play will only go to further reinforce some people's opinion that Ovechkin plays with a reckless, irresponsible abandon.  And as far as intention from the type of play that it was, much more can be read into this one than the hit against Buffalo, where he hit the player shoulder-to-shoulder.

What we do know about Ovechkin's style of play is that he is relentless, willing, and relishes the opportunity to throw his body around in a rough, tough, aggressive manner.  And there are even those that say that Ovechkin plays "dirty".

Regardless of opinion, this is his second game misconduct in less than two weeks, prompting an automatic review and possible suspension.

But the disciplinary measures are secondary right now compared to the concerns about Ovechkin's health.

Meanwhile, Theodore played a magnificent game, especially early.  Carolina got 13 shots on goal in the game's first six minutes, and the veteran goalie, who had not played since Nov. 14, was equal to the task.

Backstrom had a big game as well, netting two goals.  He tipped in a nice feed from Ovechkin before the injury, and had a nice backhander to beat Michael Leighton, who was badly out of position.

Eric Fehr buried his seventh goals of the season as well, completing a two-on-one with Backstrom.

So the Washington Capitals organization and faithful will hold their collective breath overnight as everyone awaits Ovechkin's date with the team orthopedist tomorrow morning.  It's impossible to speculate at this point what the extent of the injury is until the results of his examination are released. 

But Ovechkin, one of the toughest players in the NHL pound-for-pound, was delicately assisted from the ice, clearly hanging his right leg limp, unable to put any of his weight on the leg.

Ovechkin's injury, and the circumstances surrounding it, are matters that go beyond the Capitals community.  The two-time MVP is one of the faces on the NHL, and expected to carry the torch for the Russian Olympic team in Vancouver in February.  His absence for an extended period of time would hurt the league and put a serious dent in Russia's Olympic hopes.

It's safe to say that the world's hockey community will anxiously await the Capitals' team doctor's diagnosis.

The Washington Capitals stormed out of the gates, going up 2-0 midway through the first period.  But the homestanding Montreal Canadiens scored three straight goals in the second and third periods and looked to be controlling the game. 

But Eric Fehr snuck a rebound attempt underneath Carey Price with 11.4 seconds remaining with the Caps playing six-on-four, and Nick Backstrom beat Price with a snap shot in the third round of the shootout to lift the Caps over the Canadiens, before a raucous, sellout crowd at the Bell Centre in Montreal.

Things got off to an encouraging start for the Capitals (15-5-6).  Fehr and Alex Ovechkin scored 1:12 apart in the first period to take a serious 2-0 lead, and minutes later, Ovechkin came in alone on a breakaway on Price.  The "Great 8" put a quick deke on the netminder and went to his forehand, but Price was equal to the task, keeping his team in the game long enough to get them started.

Montreal (12-12-2) answered pretty quickly in the second period.  With Jay Beagle in the box for a "light" tripping penalty, Jaroslav Spacek landed a blast from the point to cut the deficit in half at 5:40. 

Ten minutes later, Tomas Plekanec lifted a backhand past Semyon Varlamov (21 saves on 24 shots) after a scrum in front of the net.  Plekanec got behind Karl Alzner in the confusion, but it was a hiccup in the rookie's otherwise terrific game, just his second of the season.  In 16:57 of total ice time, he had an even rating, and assisted on Fehr's first goal.

Montreal took the lead at 5:34 of the third, with Travis Moen getting credit for a tip-in of Marc-Andre Bergeron's booming slap shot from the point.  The goal came at the end of a power play, one where the Caps played over a minute down two men.  They killed off the five-on-three, but long their energy just at the end of the shift to give up the big shot.

Things looked bleak in the dwindling minutes of the final frame.  Price came up huge on several occasions, but he himself almost made the fatal mistake.  With less than two minutes remaining, he tried to clear a puck along the boards, but sent it right to the tape of Brendan Morrison. 

The veteran pivot put the shot on net, but Price got just enough of it to push it out of the goal.

The Caps would get the last, best chance though.  With Varlamov off for the extra skater at the 1:30 mark, Washington got good pressure on the Montreal net.  At 19:44, Paul Mara was whistled for high-sticking, giving the Caps an offensive zone draw.

Nick Backstrom got tied up on the draw, but turned his body into Plekanec and kicked the puck back to Mike Green at the point.  He sent the puck across the rink to Ovechkin at the opposite point, who unleashed a blast that Price turned away.

But Fehr was in the right place at the right time, and slid the puck just underneath Price for the equalizer.

Overtime was scoreless, then both goalies stopped the first two shooters in the shootout.  Varlamov then stoned Plekanec after the Canadien went way wide and then tried to go short side, but the young Russian netminder got his left pad down to close the door.

Backstrom then got his chance, and he did not disappoint.  He went straight at Price, and fired a snap shot stick side that left the goalie defenseless.

The Caps now head down to Carolina to take on the Hurricanes Monday night at 7:00 pm.

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THREE STARS

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

2. R. Hamrlik - MON (Goals: 0, Assists: 2)

3. E. Fehr - WAS (Goals: 2, Assists: 0)

BOX SCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

Washington, DC -- Semyon Varlamov made the saves, Alex Ovechkin and Eric Fehr scored the goals, and the Caps' penalty killers put the clamps on in the third period, as the Washington Capitals shut out the Buffalo Sabres 2-0 before a capacity crowd at the house that Abe Pollin built, in the first hockey game since the Capitals' original owner passed away Tuesday.

The young goaltender made 25 saves for his first career regular season shut out, many in spectacular fashion, especially in the third period.

Varlamov needed to be on his game, as did the Caps penalty killers, in the final frame.  Their leader, Alex Ovechkin, drew a five minute boarding major, with the accompanying game misconduct that went along with it.

Ovechkin ran into Patrick Kaleta just 3:38 into the third period from behind, sending the Sabre into the boards face first.  The replay showed that Ovechkin hit Kaleta in the shoulder, but the hit was hard enough at full-speed to earn the call, much to the chagrin of the Verizon Center faithful.

"I just go take a hit and [Kaleta] just fell into the boards. ... Max, it's got to be 2 minutes," Ovechkin said.

"We just watched it a half a dozen times...Kaleta saw him coming," coach Bruce Boudreau explained after the game.  "It might have warranted a two minute minor, but I don't think it warranted anything more than that."

Regardless, Ovechkin would watch the rest of this one from the locker room.

The Caps killed the five minute major, and was given a brief reprise as Craig Rivet took a two-minute tripping penalty in the middle of it. 

"You lose the most prolific scorer on the planet Earth, which is tough," defenseman Brian Pothier said. "But you have to kill a five-minute penalty. As Ovie's skating off the ice, we're telling him, 'We've got this one for you.' He does so much for our team. Every night, he bails us out. We could sure do it for him."

They also killed a two-minute delay of game penalty on an especially lazy play by Mike Green behind his own net, as he lofted the puck off the ice.

Behind the killers, Varlamov was rock solid.  He was tight on the posts and even made a couple of nice glove saves as the time ticked away.

"Varly was solid," Boudreau said. "It was like he was saying, 'I'm not going to let this happen to me again in the third period.'"

Ovechkin opened the scoring in the first period, taking a puck between the Caps' circles, carried into the offensive zone, skated across the high slot, and flung a wrist shot past Sabres goalie Ryan Miler (22 saves).  It was his 17th of this campaign.

Eric Fehr got the insurance goal at 13:38 of the third.  Brendan Morrison won an offensive zone draw back to Mike Green, who slapped a pass to the end boards, where Morrison gained control.  The pivot then skated the puck behind the net and found Fehr standing on the doorstep, unmolested by Sabres defense. 

Fehr banged the puck past Miller for his fourth goal of the season.

But the 21-year old netminder was the biggest story of the game.  He is 4-0-2 in his last six games with a goals against under 1.50.  He seems to have wrested the mantel of No. 1 goalie from Jose Theodore, who was not playing at the top of his game even before his recent sabbatical.

Varlamov, through an interpreter, was succinct in his assessment of his performance, "I've gotten over being nervous."

Music to Caps fans' ears.

BOX SCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

The Washington Capitals, as they have so many times this season already, dominated through two periods, taking a 3-1 lead into the final frame against the Ottawa Senators Monday evening.

What followed was "a collapse by 20 guys and I don't know how else to sugarcoat it," according to coach Bruce Boudreau after the game. 

Ottawa scored twice in the third to tie and Mike Fisher, the NHL's No. 3 star of the week last week, batted home a centering pass from Chris Phillips past Semyon Varlamov (33 saves) in overtime to seal Washington's fate.

The Capitals (13-5-6), tied for the lead in the Eastern Conference with Pittsburgh, lost for the fourth time in five games (1-2-2) during a very trying time on the schedule, and with the accumulation of injuries across the team.

Missing again from the lineup were Alexander Semin, Milan Jurcina, Boyd Gordon, Shaone Morrisonn, Tom Poti, Mike Knuble and Quintin Laing.

No one wants to blame injuries and the schedule for the recent troubles, but reasons are different than excuses.

"I don't think the problem was physical," center David Steckel said. "I just think mentally we shut it down."

"It's a tough loss. I still can't really believe that we let it slip away," said Jay Beagle, who registered his first NHL goal to give the Caps a two-goal lead.  "I scored but at the same point you're disappointed with the loss so it's kind of a bitter feeling."

Washington has allowed a power play goal that has tied or been the go-ahead goal in the third period eight times this season, and unfortunately the trend continued.

Three penalties in the third period made playing with the lead more dangerous than it should have been.  Ottawa tied it up with Alex Ovechkin in the box for a questionable roughing call.  "I think he just go low and I just hit him," Ovechkin said. "But I don't take a penalty."

The Caps could do nothing with a gift later in the period, as the Senators were whistled for too many men on the ice.

"They wanted it more.  We take three dumb penalties, they get the momentum, they get the crowd into it and we leave our poor goalie out to dry," Boudreau said.

"What happens a lot to us is that we go two periods without a penalty and then all of a sudden it's, well, 'We got to call something on them.' And you get a cheap one. But at least two of them were deserved."

Washington outshot Ottawa 25-15 through the first two periods of play, but the table was reversed in the third, as the Sens dominated, beating the Caps in shots 18-3.

The Caps got first period goals from Chris Clark (2) and Brendan Morrison (8) to take the early 2-1 lead, and Beagle got his first in the second period, which should have made things comfortable in the third period.

But it seems like lately, when things should be comfortable, that's when the Capitals have their most trouble.

The Caps are off until Wednesday night, when they host the Buffalo Sabres at 7:00 pm at Verizon Center.

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THREE STARS

1. M. Fisher - OTT (Goals: 1, Assists: 0)

2. P. Regin - OTT (Goals: 1, Assists: 0)

3. M. Green - WAS (Goals: 0, Assists: 1)

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NOTES

Mike Green assisted on Morrison's goal, extending his point streak to seven games.