By Tarik El-Bashir
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 10, 2007

It wasn't exactly the way Nicklas Backstrom had envisioned scoring his first NHL goal. But after going 15 games without one, the Washington Capitals rookie wasn't about to get picky.

Backstrom crashed Ottawa's net Thursday night at Scotiabank Place, fought off Senators center Chris Kelly, then whacked a loose puck out of midair past goaltender Ray Emery on a second-period power play. A thing of beauty it was not, but Backstrom's milestone moment spurred the Capitals to a 4-1 victory over the Eastern Conference's best team.

"It was a dirty goal, but it counts," Backstrom said with a smile after yesterday's optional practice at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. "It was a very important goal in the game. So I'm glad I scored it."

Earlier this month, Backstrom's drought caused a bit of consternation on the part of Coach Glen Hanlon, who broached the subject during an informal meeting with the former first-round pick.

"I went to him and asked if he had ever gone 12 games without scoring," Hanlon said. "I thought he was going to say, 'No.' And I was going to have to say, 'Hang in there.' But he said it wasn't bothering him. He's not all about scoring. He's all about winning and setting up people to score."

Said Backstrom: "I didn't feel any pressure on me. I had the same problem last year in Sweden. I didn't score [often], but I had lots of assists."

Then, after a brief pause, he started smiling again. "It's an unbelievable feeling to score my first goal," he said.

Drafted as a playmaking center, Hanlon put the Swede on the left wing for the season's opening month in the hopes taking some of the pressure off as he adjusted to the North American game. Wingers have considerably less responsibility at both ends of the ice.

But injury problems, and a coinciding goal-scoring slump for Backstrom and his teammates, prompted Hanlon to move the 19-year-old to his natural position for good on Tuesday.

It paid off immediately. Backstrom responded with an eye-opening performance in the Capitals' 2-1 overtime loss in Atlanta. He centered the second line between wingers Tomas Fleischmann and Viktor Kozlov.

Backstrom's breakthrough, however, came two days later against the Senators.

Not only did he score the winner, he also logged a career-high 21 minutes 50 seconds of ice time, significantly more than his season average of 14:40 per game.

Hanlon confirmed yesterday that Backstrom has likely played his last game on the wing.

"Our plan was for him to get a handful of games -- we didn't put a number on it -- to get an understanding of our system and D-zone coverage," Hanlon said. "We wanted to break him in slowly. Realistically, I thought it might take a little bit longer. But his hockey sense is off the charts, obviously."

Hanlon added, "You're not going to see him play the wing again."

It's no coincidence, Backstrom said, that his best game came with him in the middle.

"When I'm playing center, I'm much more into it," said Backstrom, who was tied for fourth in rookie scoring with a goal and seven assists through Thursday's games. "It gets me in the game more."

Hanlon said he was pleased with the chemistry exhibited by the Fleischmann-Backstrom-Kozlov line and plans to keep it together for the foreseeable future. Against the Senators, Fleischmann netted his third goal and Kozlov enjoyed his best game as a Capital, notching a goal and two primary assists.

With his line set, and his first goal out of the way, Backstrom said he plans to focus on improving other areas of his game, such as faceoffs. Although he hasn't taken many draws, he has struggled, winning only 12 of 39 (30.8 percent.) "It's not strength," Backstrom said. "Faceoffs here are different. In Sweden, you just put your stick down. Here they are a big deal. You have to fight for the puck. I have to work hard. But like scoring goals, it is going to come for me."

Capitals Note: Wingers Chris Clark (lacerated left ear) and Alexander Semin (sprained right ankle) remain on injured reserve and are out for tonight's game against Tampa Bay.