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In a Must-Win, It's Ovechkin
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Capitals goalie Cristobal Huet was also superb, stopping 18 shots, including one on Vincent Lecavalier from point-blank range about a minute into the third period. Lecavalier left the game a few minutes later with a right shoulder injury caused by a Matt Cooke check in open ice. No penalty was called on the play, and Lightning Coach John Tortorella called it a "cheap shot." Lecavalier will have an MRI exam tomorrow.
Washington's needed victory came without defenseman Shoane Morrisonn, who was hurt late in the first period of Tuesday's 4-1 win over Carolina. The team is calling it an "upper-body" injury, but Morrisonn was favoring his shoulder as he left the ice. Morrisonn's absence left the Capitals with a huge void on the blueline, but they didn't seem to miss a beat without him.
Washington outshot the Lightning 20-5 in the opening period and went into the first intermission tied at 1 after having a goal waved off. It was the most shots the Lightning had allowed in the period this season.
Viktor Kolzov almost scored on the game's first shift, but Tampa Bay responded with a goal of its own at just 39 seconds in.
During a scramble in front of the net, Lightning defenseman Filip Kuba pinched down low and flipped a loose puck past Huet, who wasn't able to get his glove on the puck to freeze it because of a tangle of legs and skates in front of him.
Controversy struck moments later. The Capitals appeared to pull even on a goal by Laich. But it was waved off because of goalie interference after left wing Tomas Fleischmann shoved Lightning defenseman Matt Smaby into Ramo.
"The explanation was that it was incidental contact," Boudreau said, "and that the [goalie] didn't have time to recover."
The Capitals, however, continued to pour it on and eventually scored a goal that counted. Ovechkin fired a fumbled puck in the slot off of a defenseman's skate and past Ramo at 12:01 to make it 1-1. The goal broke Luc Robitaille's NHL single-season record for most goals by a left wing.
The score stayed that way until Ovechkin's second strike.
Capitals Notes: Capitals right wing Chris Clark (groin tendon), defenseman Brian Pothier (concussion) and center David Steckel (broken finger) were out, while left wing Quintin Laing and goaltender Brent Johnson were healthy scratches. . . . Nicklas Backstrom moved into a tie with Ovechkin (2005-06) for the Capitals' rookie record for assists in a season with 54.
